bulk up

verb

bulked up; bulking up; bulks up

intransitive verb

: to gain weight especially by becoming more muscular

transitive verb

: to cause to bulk up

Examples of bulk up in a Sentence

she bulked up her hair with one hand as she reached for the shears with the other

Recent Examples on the Web

Regular Pilates is often rehabilitation-focused, while Lagree was designed for muscle tightening and toning without bulking up. — Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 9 July 2026

The fund further bulks up its dividend by selling options on its holdings. — Brett Owens, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026

DuckDuckGo’s free browser is bulking up its ad blocking to stamp out commercials that pop up on YouTube's website. — Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 8 July 2026

The Comcast-NBCUniversal downsizing comes as other Hollywood players are bulking up. — Samantha Masunaga, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1979, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Rhymes for bulk up

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