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🎁 To add extra 💬 To add a remark 🏳️ To give up
to throw in

to throw in

33 4.9
Stop trying because you cannot win
  • phrasal verb
  • /θroʊ ɪn/
  • Informal
: rendirse
  • Then, you have no reason to keep hanging on and just throw in the towel.
  • throw in the towel

It's it's very easy to want to throw in the towel.

Examples

  • Sometimes things do look very bleak, but it's too soon to throw in the towel.

    Blog text (4)

  • If I can still do what nobody else can, why should I throw in the towel?

    Fiction book (1998)

  • There we go, throw in the towel.

  • Just throw in the towel?

    Global Heresy (2002)

  • "Would it kill you to throw in the towel?"

    Fiction book (1998)

  • Throw in the towel now, love.

    The Iron Lady (2011)

  • Because if you did, you'd know it's time to throw in the towel on this stupid trip.

    Ezra (2024)

  • Don't give up, don't throw in the towel.

  • Throw in the towel.

    He Got Game (1998)

  • After several failed attempts to fix the car, I decided to throw in the towel and call a mechanic.

Synonyms

to give up
vsto throw in
∞ 1.2

To stop trying to do something or accept defeat

is used especially for admitting defeat in contests or difficult situations
to drop out
vsto throw in
304 3.0

To leave a course, competition or group before finishing

is about admitting defeat or stopping trying, not simply leaving early
to quit
vsto throw in
218 1.5

To stop trying when something is too hard

is about admitting defeat in competitive or tough situations rather than general abandonment
to give it up
vsto throw in
217 3.7

To stop doing something you once did

is used more for admitting defeat in a contest or hard task
to give in
vsto throw in
187 3.0

To stop resisting and agree to what others want

is about admitting defeat or stopping trying, not just reluctantly agreeing
surrender
vsto throw in
111 4.2

Giving up after defeat, for example when an army stops fighting

focuses more narrowly on admitting defeat or stopping effort in contests
to concede
vsto throw in
41 4.9

To accept that you have lost a contest or election

is more general, used for stopping trying in hard situations
to relent
vsto throw in
33 5.8

To stop resisting and allow something to happen, like a person giving in or a storm easing

is stronger, meaning admit defeat or stop trying rather than simply easing resistance
to throw in the towel
vsto throw in
  • Informal
28 4.8

To stop trying because you know you cannot succeed

is a general phrase for admitting defeat or ceasing effort
to capitulate
vsto throw in
22 8.4

To stop fighting back and accept defeat or demands

is used more generally for admitting defeat or stopping trying under pressure
to fall by the wayside
vsto throw in
  • Informal
10 6.5

Stop taking part or trying because of problems

is used for deliberately admitting defeat or stopping efforts in contests
to say uncle
vsto throw in
  • Informal
2 8.9

To give up because of pressure or pain

is the standard expression for admitting defeat or stopping efforts
to cry uncle
vsto throw in
  • Informal
2 8.8

To admit you give up when someone pressures you

is used broadly for stopping trying in contests or difficult circumstances
to yield up
vsto throw in
2 7.4

Give something to another person because you are forced to do so

focuses on admitting defeat or stopping effort rather than losing possessions
to drop by the wayside
vsto throw in
  • Informal
1 7.5

Stop taking part because it becomes too difficult

emphasizes active admission of defeat rather than gradual loss of involvement
to fold like a cheap suit
vsto throw in
  • Informal
1 9.6

To give in easily when under pressure

is for admitting defeat or stopping efforts, not just weakly yielding
to chuck up the sponge
vsto throw in
  • UK
9.9

To stop trying because it seems pointless

is the general term for admitting defeat or stopping effort in contests

Antonyms

to persevere
37 5.1

Keep trying to do something even when it is hard

to keep on pushing through
  • Informal
1 5.1

To continue to try hard even when things are difficult

How Defeated

surrender
111 4.2
to throw in
  • Informal
33 4.9
to quit
∞ 1.0
to withdraw
311 2.8
to bow out
24 4.9

Surface Forms

throw in infinitive
throwing in present participle
throws in third person singular
threw in past
thrown in past participle

Morphology

throw + in

Although 'throw' + 'in' can transparently mean to put something inside or to add/include (e.g. 'throw in a freebie'), the sense 'to admit defeat' is a metaphorical/idiomatic extension (from 'throw in the towel') that is not directly derivable from the literal meanings. This sense depends on cultural/idiomatic knowledge of the gesture and so is only partially predictable for a B1 learner who merely knows the constituent words.

Etymology

Throw in comes from boxing, where a trainer would throw a towel into the ring to stop the fight. So to throw in came to mean 'to give up'.