shape up or ship out

verb

To either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave; to either improve one's performance in an activity or else withdraw from that activity completely.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verbshape up or ship out (third-person singular simple present shapes up or ships out, present participle shaping up or shipping out, simple past and past participle shaped up or shipped out)

present singular third person shapes up or ships out · participle present shaping up or shipping out · participle past shaped up or shipped out · past shaped up or shipped out

  1. idiomaticTo either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave; to either improve one's performance in an activity or else withdraw from that activity completely.

    Portions of those letters quoted by Bruccoli indicate that though Hemingway could be sympathetic, he used a lot of ink telling Fitzgerald to shape up or ship out.

    1978 April 3, R. Z. Sheppard, “The Far Side of Friendship (review of Scott and Ernest by Matthew J. Bruccoli)”, in Time

Translations

Hungarian vagy megszoksz, vagy megszöksz, megszoksz vagy megszöksz
  • vagy megszoksz, vagy megszökszto either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave
  • megszoksz vagy megszökszto either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave
Polish do roboty albo do widzenia
  • do roboty albo do widzeniato either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave
Cite this entry
APA

shape up or ship out. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shape%20up%20or%20ship%20out

MLA

“shape up or ship out.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shape%20up%20or%20ship%20out. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “shape up or ship out,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shape%20up%20or%20ship%20out.

Source: shape up or ship out on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.