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

Not to be outdone, retailers far and wide have leveled up with competing events, such as Walmart Deal Days and Target Circle Week. —Pamela N. Danziger, Forbes.com, 12 July 2025

That vote of confidence paid off, allowing Stalter to exhibit a versatility that no doubt helped her level up to multifaceted romantic lead. —Judy Berman, Time, 10 July 2025

There’s no debate that caffeine can level up your workout performance (tons of research backs this up), which is why Jones is a fan of sipping coffee pre-exercise or leaning on caffeinated gels during endurance training and racing. —Jenny McCoy, SELF, 9 July 2025

Think of it as a cheat code to level up flavor on easy summer dishes. —Adam Mills, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 July 2025

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