cough up

verb

coughed up; coughing up; coughs up

transitive verb

1

: hand over, deliver

cough up the money

2

: to lose possession of (a ball or puck) during a game

the quarterback coughed up the ball

Synonyms

• cede
• deliver
• give up
• hand over
• lay down
• relinquish
• render
• surrender
• turn in
• turn over
• yield

Examples of cough up in a Sentence

finally got my brother to cough up the dough he owed me

Recent Examples on the Web

Compounding the pain of a point that slipped away, the Canucks coughed up a third-period lead against a tired team that largely outchanced and outplayed them throughout the evening. —Thomas Drance, The Athletic, 7 Jan. 2025

After the Dolphins got the ball back, defensive end Will McDonald IV tackled Huntley in the backfield, causing the backup quarterback to cough up the ball. —C. Isaiah Smalls Ii, Miami Herald, 6 Jan. 2025

Rudy Giuliani faces a contempt hearing in Manhattan federal court Friday for failing to satisfy a judge’s orders to cough up assets to the Georgia mother and daughter he was found liable for defaming. —Molly Crane-Newman, New York Daily News, 3 Jan. 2025

Owner Steve Cohen coughed up $765 million to bring in Juan Soto for the next 15 years. —Benedict Cosgrove, Newsweek, 18 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1890, in the meaning defined at sense 1