coughed up

verb

past tense of cough up
as in relinquished
to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress finally got my brother to cough up the dough he owed me

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of coughed up Josh Giddey, the primary facilitator, coughed up five turnovers against six assists and struggled to progress the ball past midcourt. — Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 22 Oct. 2026 He was sacked five times by Florida and coughed up the game-clinching fumble before the Gators ran out the clock. — ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026 To start the second half, Hoover found Davion Chandler for a quick slant, but Chandler fumbled, the first time the Hoosiers had coughed up the ball in 1,437 plays. — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026 New York Yankees players paused the action to cover themselves in bug spray, but Joba Chamberlain succumbed to the elements and coughed up his club’s lead in the late innings. — Zack Meisel, New York Times, 3 Oct. 2026 The Chargers coughed up another winnable home game, falling 26-14 to the Raiders — the same score as last week’s loss — as fourth-quarter breakdowns define Jim Harbaugh’s 0-2 start. — Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2026 That could mean billions of additional dollars being coughed up by already cost-conscious traditional rightsholders like Fox, NBCUniversal and CBS/Paramount. — Dade Hayes, Deadline, 8 Sep. 2026 Oviedo faked the punt and picked up a first down in Lake Mary territory but the ball was coughed up and the Rams came up with the recovery. — Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 28 Aug. 2026 The Marlins lost, 4-2, after the bullpen coughed up the lead and after the offense went just 2 for 18 with runners in scoring position and stranded 14 players on base. — Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 25 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for coughed up
  1. relinquished
  2. rendered
  3. surrendered
  4. delivered
  5. turned over
  6. turned in
  7. handed over
Verb
  • Although dozens of islands were claimed through this process, the overwhelming bulk of these claims were relinquished in the late 20th century as the island countries of Oceania began to achieve independence.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Panettiere had relinquished custody of Kaya to Klitschko in 2018.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of relinquished
Verb
  • After officers rendered immediate medical aid, paramedics responded and pronounced the man dead at the scene.
    — Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Advertisement That prescription has rankled many cybersecurity experts who scoff at the possibility that their expertise will be rendered obsolete.
    — Harry Booth, Time, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of rendered
Verb
  • He was stationed in India in 1945 when Japan surrendered, marking the end of the war.
    — Toria Sheffield, PEOPLE, 25 Oct. 2026
  • There were penalties that hampered a couple drives and a few too many explosive plays surrendered on defense for a second consecutive week for Cristobal’s liking.
    — Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of surrendered
Verb
  • With more than 50 years of experience in subsea robotics, ISE has delivered over 250 underwater vehicles to customers in more than 20 countries worldwide, according to a press release.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The strategy has delivered substantial revenue gains as demand has ‌held up despite sharp fare increases.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of delivered
Verb
  • The audio, which must be converted onto something that can be turned over to the court, comes from calls made to the child abuse and neglect hotline.
    — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Corlette said to make sure any arrangement is formally agreed upon in advance so the account isn't unexpectedly turned over to collections.
    — Stephanie O'Neill, NPR, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of turned over
Verb
  • Edwin Diaz had an ERA near nine in the regular season, battled several injuries, and turned in one of the worst reliever seasons in baseball.
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 20 Oct. 2026
  • The opening night rosters in the NBA have been turned in — and there are 17 French players on those lists, the most of any international land.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of turned in
Verb
  • The roommate handed over the toddler, along with an extra set of clothing and diapers.
    — Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Oct. 2026
  • By the 2120s, the entire labyrinth will be completely backfilled, sealed, and handed over to the state.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of handed over

Browse Nearby Words

cougars
coughed up
coughing up
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Coughed up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/coughed%20up. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of shindig

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All