level up

verb

leveled up or levelled up; leveling up or levelling up; levels up

transitive + intransitive

: to advance or improve (oneself, someone else, or something) in or as if in a game

Collect cards and magic potions, then level up your favourite dragons to increase their abilities.

—Animation Xpress

Staying competitive comes down to many factors, but one that's often overlooked, in my opinion, is the ongoing need to level up your marketing team.

—Sujan Patel

That [Kevin] Reilly has leveled up the brands of both networks is clear in their programming selections.

—Broadcasting and Cable

We provide nurses with the tools they need to level up their careers and their profession …

—News & Record (Greensboro, North Carolina)

Leveling up and finding new weapons, armor, or items give you plenty of incentive to keep slashing and button mashing away.

—Dan Hsu

Companies coax helpers to participate by offering points for useful answers, connecting total points to specific achievement levels, and encouraging users to level up, for even greater prestige.

—Paul McFedries

Examples of level up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Hopefully, the lessons learned here will be used to level up other projects and possible continuations. — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 18 Sep. 2026

You’ll be tempted to put it on before work presentations, fancy dinners, and even long-haul flights — given the fact that the object levels up casual and formal ‘fits in equal measure. — Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 16 Sep. 2026

If Dart can level up and Nabers is anything like the pre-injury version of himself, New York’s offense might just be a fantasy carnival. — Andy Behrens, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026

After a standout rookie season in which she was named an All-Star, earned Second Team All-WNBA honors and Rookie of the Year, Bueckers has leveled up this year. — Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 24 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

2003, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for level up

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