pack up

verb

1. to put (things) away in a proper or suitable place

2. informal,  to give up (an attempt) or stop doing (something)

   if you don't do your work better, you might as well pack up

3. (intr) (of an engine, machine, etc) to fail to operate; break down

4. engineering to use packing to adjust the height of a component or machine before it is secured in its correct position or alignment

Example Sentences

The Times reported last week that a battalion chief ordered firefighters to pack up their hoses and leave the burn area the day after the Lachman fire, even though they complained that the ground was still smoldering and rocks were hot to the touch.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

And a third firefighter said this month that crew members were upset when told to pack up and leave but that they could not ignore orders, according to the texts.

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Sharma said, “I don’t want to leave New York — it’s my dream city. I have a job here, a life here and I want to continue building that out here. …I don’t want to have to pack up at 26 and start all over again somewhere.”

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“I don’t want to have to pack up at 26 and start all over again somewhere.”

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“If the lines do change, that doesn’t mean we pack up and go home,” he said.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• abandon 
• depart 
• desert 
• discharge 
• displace 
• expel 
• leave 
• move out 
• pull out 
• remove 
• vacate 
• withdraw