stack up

verb

stacked up; stacking up; stacks up

intransitive verb

1

: to add up

Cars were beginning to stack up behind the bus.

2

: to be in a particular state or situation

Here's how things stack up today.

3

: measure up, compare

—usually used with against

How does he stack up against the other job candidates?

Synonyms of stack up

• compare (with)
• measure up (to)

Examples of stack up in a Sentence

those newspapers have been stacking up in the basement since we moved here

Recent Examples on the Web

For some on China's popular RedNote social media app, this year's award raises questions about how China's research capabilities stack up to the United States'. — Jan Camenzind Broomby, NPR, 23 July 2026

That stacks up against the 176 conventional seawalls permitted by Fort Lauderdale in the same window where the church applied for one, the church said. — Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 22 July 2026

How juice stacks up nutritionally 100% fruit and vegetable juices are rich in vitamins and minerals. — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson july 21, Sacbee.com, 21 July 2026

Thus was Samsung's most aggressive S26 Ultra promotion yet, and deals have continued stacking up through the summer since. — Janhoi McGregor, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1896, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for stack up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup

Kids Definition

stack up

verb

: measure up sense 2, compare

see how you stack up against the champion