give up — surrender to authorities
phrasal verbC2IELTS 8+neutraloccasional
To formally surrender oneself or someone else to the police or another authority, often after being sought or pursued.
Say it like a native
Textbook The fugitive decided to surrender himself to the authorities.
Native The fugitive gave himself up to the police.
'Give yourself up' is the natural phrasing for surrendering. 'Surrender oneself to the authorities' is legalistic.
Pattern: give yourself/someone up (to someone)
In use
- After weeks on the run, the suspect finally gave himself up to the police.crime
- In some cases, fugitives choose to give themselves up rather than face the stress of constant pursuit.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ He gave up to the police.
✓ He gave himself up to the police.
This sense needs a reflexive object: 'give yourself/himself up'. Bare 'give up' means quit.
Common collocations
give + oneself + up— himself up, themselves up, the suspect up, to the police
Don't confuse it
Unlike the B1 senses ('stop trying' or 'quit a habit'), this sense involves surrendering to an authority, not ceasing an effort or habit.
Related
- give up (stop trying) — 'give up' also has the more basic meaning 'stop trying'; this is the advanced sense.