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Glite Dictionary
🤮 To vomit a little 💸 To give unwillingly
to spit up

to spit up

7.7
To give something, often money, because others make you do it
  • phrasal verb
  • /spɪt ʌp/
  • Informal
translation icon : soltar
  • She had to spit up the last bit of her savings to pay for the emergency repairs.

Examples

  • We all had to spit up extra cash to cover the unexpected repairs.

  • The company finally had to spit up the missing funds after weeks of delay.

  • He didn't want to, but eventually he spit up the information they needed.

  • He spit up the cash after a long debate.

  • Don't spit up your savings so quickly!

  • After much persuasion, he finally spit up the details about the secret project.

  • The manager forced his team to spit up the necessary budget figures for the presentation.

Synonyms

to pay up
vsto spit up
  • Informal
35 3.6

Give someone the money you owe them, often after they ask you

covers giving by obligation or debt rather than general reluctant handing
to cough up
vsto spit up
  • Informal
23 6.5

To pay money unwillingly after being pressured

is the same idea but expressed with different wording
to pony up
vsto spit up
  • Informal
21 8.2

Pay money, often reluctantly, when others expect it

is used for giving under reluctance or pressure rather than obligation
to fork over
vsto spit up
  • Informal
15 6.1

To give money to someone after they ask or force you

applies to giving under reluctance or pressure in general
to fork out
vsto spit up
  • Informal
3 7.5

To pay money when you do not want to

is the same idea but covers handing over beyond payment
to fork up
vsto spit up
  • Informal
1 8.1

To pay money unwillingly

involves giving under pressure as well as mere reluctance

Antonyms

to keep
∞ 1.0

To continue doing something or stay in the same state

How Reluctant

surrender
77 4.2
to spit up
  • Informal
7.7
to part with
42 4.1
to hand over
296 2.8
to give
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

spit up infinitive
spitting up present participle
spits up third person singular
spat up past
spat up past participle

Morphology

spit + up

The meaning is directly derivable from 'spit' (to eject saliva or mouth contents) combined with the directional/particle 'up' indicating outward/upward expulsion, so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the action. This verb + particle composition is a common, largely literal pattern (with only minor usage nuances such as infant regurgitation), making the expression transparently interpretable.

Etymology

Spit up may come from a strong picture: imagine someone forced to spit coins or papers up into another person's hand when they must give something under pressure. One popular story says that image of being made to hand over things unwillingly is why spit up means 'to give money or information reluctantly'.