sew up
Britishverb
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to fasten or mend completely by sewing
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to acquire sole use or control of
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informal to complete or negotiate successfully
to sew up a deal
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Complete successfully, as in Our team has sewn up the championship . [ Colloquial ; c. 1900]
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Gain complete control of, monopolize, as in Our restaurant hopes to sew up the town's takeout business . [ Colloquial ; first half of 1900s]
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.
Others simply mocked the assertion that a new ballroom would sew up the president’s apparent security concerns.
From Salon ● May 1, 2026
Big players aim to sew up longer-term relationships with bundled policies, to be less vulnerable to pure price-shopping.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 8, 2025
Another 100 stitches were added after Blue rested for five to six days, to sew up the rest of the exposed mouth area, Curtis said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2024
Over the weekend, in a last-ditch effort to sew up the votes, Mr. McCarthy put forward his most significant offers yet.
From New York Times ● Jan. 3, 2023
As soon as I said it, I wished I could sew up my mouth.
From "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
