Etymology

cry uncle

Today it means: To beg for mercy; to give up, admit defeat, surrender; indicate submission, such as when wrestling. Full definition →

First used 19th c.Irish anacal
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The story

  1. Irish · derived fromanacal“protection”
  2. English todaycry uncle

Unknown. Uncle may be an anglicization of Irish anacal (“protection”).

Words from the same roots

Irishanacal all →

say uncle

First known use, by meaning

  • from 19th c. To beg for mercy; to give up, admit defeat, surrender; indicate submission, such as when wrestling.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.