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

Liverpool place a priority on sending players out to play men’s football when the right opportunities arrive and have plans to bulk up the staffing levels around that department following Matt Newberry’s promotion from director or loans and pathways to director of global talent. —Gregg Evans, New York Times, 13 June 2025

Superman, as Clark, visits the mastermind in jail, where he's spent all his time bulking up in the gym. —EW.com, 10 June 2025

Fueled by social media, more boys and men are turning to supplements like amino acids, creatine monohydrate, pre-workout drinks or powders, protein bars and whey protein product in an effort to bulk up and look like their cartoon superhero. —Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 June 2025

At the time, Spotify was spending heavily to bulk up its podcast content and technology capabilities, and the company also entered into exclusive deals with several top podcasters. —Todd Spangler, Variety, 5 June 2025

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