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bail up

British  

verb

  1. informal to confine (a cow) or (of a cow) to be confined by the head in a bail See bail 3

  2. (tr) history (of a bushranger) to hold under guard in order to rob

  3. (intr) to submit to robbery without offering resistance

  4. informal (tr) to accost or detain, esp in conversation; buttonhole

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

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

It happened in Cuba that there were not nearly enough buckets to bail up the syrup from the vats in the sugar-cane mills, and those at hand were too small.

From The Lightning Conductor Discovers America by Williamson, C. N. (Charles Norris)

She could frighten a wildish cow and bail up anything that would stay in a yard with her.

From Robbery under Arms; a story of life and adventure in the bush and in the Australian goldfields by Boldrewood, Rolf

After a bit we could milk, leg-rope, and bail up for ourselves, and help dad brand the calves, which began to come pretty thick.

From Robbery under Arms; a story of life and adventure in the bush and in the Australian goldfields by Boldrewood, Rolf