cry uncle en · VERB
Pronunciation
- (Australia) audio
Etymology
Unknown. Uncle may be an anglicization of Irish anacal (“protection”).
Meanings
-
(US, colloquial) To beg for mercy; to give up, admit defeat, surrender; indicate submission, such as when wrestling.
The Powels would serve strong punch and play loud music, and their parties ended when the last guest cried uncle, often a day and half after they began.
1976, Geoffrey Wolff, Black Sun, New York Review of Books, published 2003, page 158:“I said unconditional. It’s where they cry uncle or when they can’t fight any longer and there’s nobody around to cry uncle — that could happen too,” Trump said when pressed by the Guardian aboard Air Force One.
2026 March 8, Hugo Lowell, quoting Donald Trump, “Trump vague on Iran’s ‘unconditional surrender’ as he refuses to rule out US troop deployment”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| cries uncle | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic | |
| crying uncle | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| cried uncle | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| cried uncle | Tense=Past | lexicographic |