Gimme is a term in golf, where it refers to a short putt one doesn’t have to take because it’s too easy to miss. Outside sports, gimme is either a colloquial contraction of give me or a metaphorical extension of the golf term.
Examples
For example, these writers use the golf term:
Donald goes flag hunting on the par-3 16th, leaving him with a six-footer for birdie, which for Luke is in gimme range. [Wall Street Journal]
Jo Hicks-Beach won the first four holes against Catherine Bell and was always in command after making a gimme birdie on the 10th to go five up. [Otago Daily Times]
Gimme sometimes makes its way into other sports (always denoting something very easy)—for example:
The 200 fly has been his gimme event for nearly a decade, the one in which he first qualified for the Olympics. [USA Today]
It was Fremantle’s fierce determination to win a disputed ball at half forward that set up the gimme to Palmer. [Herald Sun]
And here are a few examples of gimme used outside sports:
I think you can teach kids about investing as soon as they start saying “gimme.” [quoted speech in Forbes]
Gimme some sword—hold the sorcery [headline, Independent]
Gimme a Bagel with an Organic Schmear [headline, Wall Street Journal]
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