give up the ghost
"give-up-the-ghost" is a 14-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“give up the ghost” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 17
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To cease clinging to life; to die.
Corpus desk
Index EN-give-up-the-ghost · give up the ghost · English
give up the ghost · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 17 letters
- VOW-5 5 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "G" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | give up the ghost |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| Letters | 17 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “give up the ghost” in English
Rare enough to double-check
give up the ghost is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for give up the ghost, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: Literally, to release one's spirit or soul from the body at death. From Middle English "gaf up þe gost", "ʒave up þe gost", from Old English phrases as "hēo āġeaf hire gāst" (literally, "she gave up her ghost [spirit]"), "þæt iċ gāst mīnne āġifan mōte" (lit… The correct English form is give up the ghost, spelled G-I-V-E- -U-P- -T-H-E- -G-H-O-S-T.
Definition
- 1To cease clinging to life; to die.
- 2To quit; to cease functioning.
- 3To cede a commitment to or identification with.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how give up the ghost appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
And Ieſus cryed with a loude voice, and gaue vp the ghoſt.
My old computer finally gave up the ghost the other day.
Etymology
Literally, to release one's spirit or soul from the body at death. From Middle English "gaf up þe gost", "ʒave up þe gost", from Old English phrases as "hēo āġeaf hire gāst" (literally, "she gave up her ghost [spirit]"), "þæt iċ gāst mīnne āġifan mōte" (literally, "that I must give up my ghost [spirit]"). Compare German den Geist aufgeben and Dutch de geest geven. Perhaps most notable and survived in modern English for being used in traditional translation during the death of Jesus during His crucifixion: The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], 1611, →OCLC, Matthew 27:50: “¶ Iesus, when hee had cried againe with a loud voice, yeelded vp the ghost.”
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.