give credit

Idioms  

1. Also, extend credit . Trust someone to pay at some future time what he or she owes. For example, I haven't enough cash this month, so I hope they'll give me credit . This use of credit dates from the mid-1500s.

2. Acknowledge an accomplishment, as in They really should give her credit for the work she's done . [Late 1700s] The phrase is sometimes amplified to give credit where credit is due , meaning the acknowledgment should be to the person who deserves it. This expression was probably coined by Samuel Adams in a letter (October 29, 1777), which put it: “Give credit to whom credit due.” It is sometimes put give someone their due , as in We should really give Nancy her due for trying to sort out this mess .

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Example Sentences

To give credit where it’s due, few films wear their bathos with such pride.

From Salon • Mar. 19, 2026

Dahlia Lithwick: I guess I have to give credit where it’s due.

From Slate • Feb. 19, 2026

And in her own fashion choices, Sheinbaum has similarly chosen to give credit where she says it's due, and to uplift those she can along the way.

From Barron's • Jan. 2, 2026

“So a lot of the success I’ve had I give credit to him.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 30, 2025

It seems unfair not to give credit where credit is due simply because one lacks a certain number of candles on one’s birthday cake.

From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson