give someone their gruel
give someone their gruel verb: to kill or trounce someone.
Verb
give someone their gruel (third-person singular simple present gives someone their gruel, present participle giving someone their gruel, simple past gave someone their gruel, past participle given someone their gruel)
- To kill or trounce someone.
- "Cruel! Cruel! Cruel!" he cried. "Yes, you gave him his gruel hot enough," answered Charlotte.1837, The Gambler's Dream, page 247
- I have 'barkers' by Nock, Sir,
With percussion locks, Sir,
Will give you your gruel —
hang me if I box, Sir1856, Thomas Ingoldsby, The Ingoldsby Legends: Or, Mirth & Marvels, page 87
Forms of give someone their gruel
| third-person singular present | gives someone their gruel |
|---|---|
| present participle | giving someone their gruel |
| past | gave someone their gruel |
| past participle | given someone their gruel |
Origin of give someone their gruel
Perhaps a reference to administering poison.
Questions about give someone their gruel
- What does give someone their gruel mean?
- Give someone their gruel means to kill or trounce someone.
- What part of speech is give someone their gruel?
- Give someone their gruel is a verb.
- What is the past tense of give someone their gruel?
- The past tense of give someone their gruel is gave someone their gruel.
Words near give someone their gruel in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: give someone their gruel (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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