to sell one's life dearly

Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Sell \Sell\ (s[e^]l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Sold (s[=o]ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Selling.] [OE. sellen, sillen, AS. sellan, syllan, to give, to deliver; akin to OS. sellian, OFries. sella, OHG. sellen, Icel. selja to hand over, to sell, Sw. s[aum]lja to sell, Dan. s[ae]lge, Goth. saljan to offer a sacrifice; all from a noun akin to E. sale. Cf. Sale.]

1.To transfer to another for an equivalent; to give up for a valuable consideration; to dispose of in return for something, especially for money. It is the correlative of buy. [1913 Webster]

If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor.— Matt. xix. 21.[1913 Webster]

I am changed; I'll go sell all my land.— Shak.[1913 Webster]

Note: Sell is corellative to buy, as one party buys what the other sells. It is distinguished usually from exchange or barter, in which one commodity is given for another; whereas in selling the consideration is usually money, or its representative in current notes. [1913 Webster]

2.To make a matter of bargain and sale of; to accept a price or reward for, as for a breach of duty, trust, or the like; to betray. [1913 Webster]

You would have sold your king to slaughter.— Shak.[1913 Webster]

3.To impose upon; to trick; to deceive; to make a fool of; to cheat. [Slang] --Dickens. [1913 Webster]

To sell one's life dearly, to cause much loss to those who take one's life, as by killing a number of one's assailants.

To sell (anything) out, to dispose of it wholly or entirely; as, he had sold out his corn, or his interest in a business. [1913 Webster]