bail up
Britishverb
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informal to confine (a cow) or (of a cow) to be confined by the head in a bail See bail 3
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(tr) history (of a bushranger) to hold under guard in order to rob
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(intr) to submit to robbery without offering resistance
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informal (tr) to accost or detain, esp in conversation; buttonhole
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The errant pooch then interrupted the proceedings again, with Joyce saying: "I do apologise for this dog, it's just started to bail up."
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
He was released on unsecured bail, meaning he was not required to pay his bail up front, common for misdemeanors in Pennsylvania.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2023
“We put calls out last night trying to put bail up for the guy,” Bannon said the next morning on his “War Room” podcast.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 10, 2022
Could they make us "bail up," we should be helpless to injure them.
From The Life of the Fields by Richard Jefferies
Cracky, but we had Pee-wee so crazy that he'd bail up a can of water out of one end of the boat and empty it in the other end.
From Roy Blakeley by Percy Keese Fitzhugh
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
