give ground

verb

To retreat.

Similar
cede the fieldturn tail
Opposite
gain ground
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Meanings

verbgive ground (third-person singular simple present gives ground, present participle giving ground, simple past gave ground, past participle given ground)

present singular third person gives ground · participle present giving ground · past gave ground · participle past given ground

  1. To retreat.

    Those male moose at the southeast arm didn't frighten very much when we docked to fly-fish one day. One was so scared of us he just walked toward us and snorted. We gave ground.

    1959, Harold G. (Hack) Miller, “Rod and gun”, in Hearings […] , Washington: United States Government Printing Office, page 101
  2. figurativelyTo yield an advantage.

Synonyms & antonyms

Similar
cede the fieldturn tail
Opposite
gain ground
Also see
cede the fieldgive place
Cite this entry
APA

give ground. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/give%20ground

MLA

“give ground.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/give%20ground. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “give ground,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/give%20ground.

Source: give ground on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.