"shape up or ship out" meaning in English

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "shapes up or ships out",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "shaping up or shipping out",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "shaped up or shipped out",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "shaped up or shipped out",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "shape<> up or ship<> out",
        "head": "shape up or ship out"
      },
      "expansion": "shape up or ship out (third-person singular simple present shapes up or ships out, present participle shaping up or shipping out, simple past and past participle shaped up or shipped out)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English coordinated pairs",
          "parents": [
            "Coordinated pairs",
            "Terms by etymology"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with language name categories using raw markup",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
          "parents": [
            "Terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1978 April 3, R. Z. Sheppard, “The Far Side of Friendship (review of Scott and Ernest by Matthew J. Bruccoli)”, in Time",
          "text": "Portions of those letters quoted by Bruccoli indicate that though Hemingway could be sympathetic, he used a lot of ink telling Fitzgerald to shape up or ship out.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave; to either improve one's performance in an activity or else withdraw from that activity completely."
      ],
      "id": "en-shape_up_or_ship_out-en-verb-be6ve6wO",
      "links": [
        [
          "improve",
          "improve"
        ],
        [
          "behavior",
          "behavior"
        ],
        [
          "required",
          "required"
        ],
        [
          "leave",
          "leave"
        ],
        [
          "performance",
          "performance"
        ],
        [
          "activity",
          "activity"
        ],
        [
          "withdraw",
          "withdraw"
        ],
        [
          "completely",
          "completely"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) To either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave; to either improve one's performance in an activity or else withdraw from that activity completely."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "word": "shit or get off the pot"
        },
        {
          "word": "fit in or fuck off"
        },
        {
          "word": "up or out"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "to either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave",
          "word": "vagy megszoksz, vagy megszöksz"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "to either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave",
          "word": "megszoksz vagy megszöksz"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-shape up or ship out.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/6d/En-au-shape_up_or_ship_out.ogg/En-au-shape_up_or_ship_out.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6d/En-au-shape_up_or_ship_out.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "word": "shape up or ship out"
}

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "shapes up or ships out",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "shaping up or shipping out",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "shaped up or shipped out",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "shaped up or shipped out",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "shape<> up or ship<> out",
        "head": "shape up or ship out"
      },
      "expansion": "shape up or ship out (third-person singular simple present shapes up or ships out, present participle shaping up or shipping out, simple past and past participle shaped up or shipped out)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "shit or get off the pot"
    },
    {
      "word": "fit in or fuck off"
    },
    {
      "word": "up or out"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English alliterative phrases",
        "English coordinated pairs",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
        "English idioms",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English terms with audio links",
        "English terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English verbs"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1978 April 3, R. Z. Sheppard, “The Far Side of Friendship (review of Scott and Ernest by Matthew J. Bruccoli)”, in Time",
          "text": "Portions of those letters quoted by Bruccoli indicate that though Hemingway could be sympathetic, he used a lot of ink telling Fitzgerald to shape up or ship out.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave; to either improve one's performance in an activity or else withdraw from that activity completely."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "improve",
          "improve"
        ],
        [
          "behavior",
          "behavior"
        ],
        [
          "required",
          "required"
        ],
        [
          "leave",
          "leave"
        ],
        [
          "performance",
          "performance"
        ],
        [
          "activity",
          "activity"
        ],
        [
          "withdraw",
          "withdraw"
        ],
        [
          "completely",
          "completely"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) To either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave; to either improve one's performance in an activity or else withdraw from that activity completely."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-shape up or ship out.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/6d/En-au-shape_up_or_ship_out.ogg/En-au-shape_up_or_ship_out.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6d/En-au-shape_up_or_ship_out.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "to either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave",
      "word": "vagy megszoksz, vagy megszöksz"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "to either improve one's behavior or else be required to leave",
      "word": "megszoksz vagy megszöksz"
    }
  ],
  "word": "shape up or ship out"
}