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stitch up

B2 informal separable transitive
In simple words

To sew up a cut with a needle and thread at the hospital, to finish making a deal, or to trick someone unfairly.

Literal meaning: To sew something up using stitches.

Meanings

1 B1 neutral

To close a wound by sewing it with surgical stitches (sutures).

"The doctor stitched up the cut on his forehead in the emergency room."

Grammar: separable
2 B2 idiomatic informal

To finalize or complete a business deal or agreement.

"The two companies stitched up a merger worth billions of dollars."

Grammar: separable
3 C1 idiomatic slang

(British slang) To cheat, frame, or manipulate someone so they are blamed for something they didn't do.

"He claimed he was stitched up by the police and that the evidence was planted."

Grammar: separable
Usage notes

Has three distinct senses: medical (closing wounds), business (finalizing deals), and British slang (cheating or framing). The slang sense is primarily British. Note that 'a stitch-up' is the related noun.

Commonly used with

wound cut deal agreement someone contract

Forms

Base
stitch up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
stitches up
he/she/it
Past simple
stitched up
yesterday
Past participle
stitched up
have + pp
-ing form
stitching up
continuous

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