show-up n.
1. an identification parade.
 | N.-Y. Daily Trib. 5 Jan. 1/7: SHOW UP. -- Joseph Lindsey, well known as an English Burglar and convict, was on Friday afternoon arrested and taken to the Police station, Second ward, for the purpose of making the policemen acquainted with him. | |
![[UK]](/static/img/flags/uk.png "United Kingdom") | (con. 1840s–50s) London Labour and London Poor I 420/1: I was at work at the same time as he was, and I kept pilfering, and at last they bowled me out. (loud cheers). I got a showing up, and at last they turned me away. | |
![[US]](/static/img/flags/us.png "United States") | It’s a Racket! 238: show up—Parading of captured criminals or suspects at police headquarters, so they may be studied by detectives for identification or future recognition. | |
| Boston Globe (MS) 12 May 4/3: The men were paraded [...] at Detective Headquarters in a series of ‘show-ups’. | |
| (con. 1905–25) Professional Thief (1956) 127: That decreases his chance of being identified in the showup for a heavy job (crime of violence). | |
| Rebellion of Leo McGuire (1953) 216: When they put me on the showup they made me wear the sunglasses. | |
| Man with the Golden Arm 186: Held Fri. 9 pm to Tuesday showup 96 hours. | |
| In For Life 54: With two other prisoners I was put in a ‘show-up’. | |
| Algiers Motel Incident 133: He was positive in the show-up there for Armed Robbery. | |
| (con. 1940s–60s) ‘Alvarez’ in Eve. Sun Turned Crimson (1980) in Huncke Reader (1998) 181: I was taken upstairs to the show-up and then down to a courtroom. | |
| (con. early 1950s) L.A. Confidential 58: A show-up tomorrow, prisoners would be there to ID the roughnecks. | |
![[Can]](/static/img/flags/can.png "Canada") | (con. 1920s) Legs 113: If you don’t have a key, you better crap one or you’ll be in the show-up tomorrow. |
2. attrib. use of sense 1.
| [W.R. Burnett] Big Stan 21: Station 12 was jammed for the night, and early in the morning the show-up line had played to a full house. | |
| Conant 8: [T]he boys [...] hated being wrestled down to the show-up line, especially before lunch. | |
| Pimp 167: You can jig a few steps on the ‘show up’ stage. | |
| ‘Grave Doubt’ in Destination: Morgue! (2004) 88: The show-up room/Houston PD. Five black males [...] Gary Graham in slot 3. |
3. (Aus.) a revelation.
![[Aus]](/static/img/flags/aus.png "Australia") | Sun. Times (Perth) 31 May 1/1: A couple of money-lenders are in for a sensational show-up [...] their Shylockian transactions call for the interference of the law. |
4. an embarrassment.
| Layer Cake 121: This afternoon’s meeting was a fiasco, a real show-up. |
In compounds
(US police/prison) a room in which suspects or habitual criminals are placed by the police for viewing by witnesses.
| Missouri Crime Survey 50: ‘The ‘shadow-box’ or ‘show-up’ room, for the exhibition of police characters. |