cough up

cough up
{v.}, {slang} 1. To give (money) unwillingly; pay with an effort. * /Her husband coughed up the money for the party with a good deal of grumbling./ 2. To tell what was secret; make known. * /He coughed up the whole story for the police./

Dictionary of American idioms. 2013.

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  • Cough — A young boy coughing due to pertussis (Whooping Cough). ICD 10 R05 ICD …   Wikipedia

  • Cough — Cough, n. [Cg. D. kuch. See {Cough}, v. i. ] 1. A sudden, noisy, and violent expulsion of air from the chest, caused by irritation in the air passages, or by the reflex action of nervous or gastric disorder, etc. [1913 Webster] 2. The more or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Cough — Cough, v. t. 1. To expel from the lungs or air passages by coughing; followed by up; as, to cough up phlegm. [1913 Webster] 2. To bring to a specified state by coughing; as, he coughed himself hoarse. [1913 Webster] {To cough down}, to silence or …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Cough — (k?f), v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Coughed} (k?ft); p. pr. & vb. n. {Coughing}.] [Cf. D. kuchen, MHG. k?chen to breathe, G. keuchen to pant, and E. chincough, the first part of which is prob. akin to cough; cf. also E. choke.] To expel air, or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • cough — [kɒf ǁ kɒːf] verb cough something → up phrasal verb [intransitive, transitive] informal to pay money unwillingly: • Grumman finally coughed up $40 million in settlement of the legal claims against it. • We ll get a new TV as soon as the insurance …   Financial and business terms

  • cough up — (something) 1. to allow an opponent to take the lead in a competition. Sele got a 3 0 lead in the second inning but then coughed it up in the third. 2. to pay money unwillingly. I had to cough up $35 for administration fees. Martinez s lawyers… …   New idioms dictionary

  • cough — [kôf] vi. [ME coughen, akin to MDu cuchen, to cough, Ger keuchen, to gasp] 1. to expel air suddenly and noisily from the lungs through the glottis, either as the result of an involuntary muscular spasm in the throat or to clear the air passages 2 …   English World dictionary

  • cough — [n] expelled air with sound ahem, bark, cold, croup, frog in throat*, hack, hem, tickle in throat*, whoop; concepts 65,316 cough [v] expelling air with sound bark, choke, clear throat, convulse, expectorate, hack, hawk, hem, spit up, vomit,… …   New thesaurus

  • cough — ► VERB 1) expel air from the lungs with a sudden sharp sound. 2) (of an engine) make a sudden harsh noise. 3) (cough up) informal give (something, especially money) reluctantly. 4) Brit. informal reveal information; confess. ► NOUN 1) a …   English terms dictionary

  • cough — (v.) early 14c., coughen, probably in O.E., but not recorded, from P.Gmc. *kokh (with the rough kh of German or of Scottish loch; Cf. M.Du. kochen, M.H.G. kuchen). Onomatopoeic. Related: Coughed; coughing. As a noun from c.1300 …   Etymology dictionary

  • cough — cough1 [ kaf ] verb * 1. ) intransitive to force air up through your throat with a sudden noise, especially when you have a cold or when you want to get someone s attention: My chest felt painful, and I was coughing uncontrollably. a ) cough or… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

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