chalk up

verb

chalked up; chalking up; chalks up

transitive verb

1

: ascribe, credit

chalked up his failures to inexperience

2

: attain, achieve

chalk up another victory

Synonyms of chalk up

• attribute
• ascribe

Examples of chalk up in a Sentence

let's chalk up her weird behavior to simple nervousness

chalked up a record in singles tennis that is likely to stand for a long time

Recent Examples on the Web

The show’s only performance nominee this year ended up being Connor Storrie, a nomination that can easily be chalked up to his notoriety for Heated Rivalry and to make up for Heated Rivalry being ineligible overall. — Joe Reid, Vulture, 17 July 2026

Some have been chalked up to natural disasters like hurricanes and storms, but others remain unsolved. — Andrea Romano, Travel + Leisure, 15 July 2026

Much of this success can be chalked up to the current wave of heavy nostalgia for all things early aughts — with Duff representing the millennial tween dream of the era arguably better than anyone. — Jim Harrington, Mercury News, 12 July 2026

Thune has chalked up the failure of passage to the semantics in his chamber, particularly the 60-vote filibuster threshold. — Lauren Green, The Washington Examiner, 30 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1877, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for chalk up

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