lookup

1 of 2

noun

look·​up ˈlu̇k-ˌəp 

variants or look-up

: an act, process, or instance of looking something up (as in a reference work or listing)

dictionary lookups

a price look-up

look up

2 of 2

verb

looked up; looking up; looks up

intransitive verb

1

: to cheer up

look up—things are not all bad

2

: to improve in prospects or conditions

business is looking up

transitive verb

1

: to search for in or as if in a reference work

look up an address

2

: to seek out especially for a brief visit

look me up when you're here

Synonyms

Verb

• cast about (for)
• cast around (for)
• chase (down)
• forage (for)
• hunt
• pursue
• quest
• search (for or out)
• seek
• shop (for)

Examples of lookup in a Sentence

Verb

be sure to look me up if you're ever in town

by the next morning, the skies had begun to clear and we were looking up

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

As part of its investigation, Proof News also released an interactive lookup tool. —Mia Sato, The Verge, 16 July 2024

Final Cut supports Color LUTs (lookup tables) from camera manufacturers like ARRI, Canon, Red, and Sony, but also custom LUTs for effects. —PCMAG, 30 June 2024

Verb

Young pedestrians breezed past, but some older people looked up. —Laura Preston, The New Yorker, 15 July 2024

Shortly after the Watch Fire began in San Carlos, Katie Dude looked up at a sky of grey clouds and smoke, praying for rain. —Christina Avery, The Arizona Republic, 14 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1948, in the meaning defined above

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Kids Definition

lookup

1 of 2 noun

look·​up ˈlu̇k-ˌəp 

: the process or an instance of looking something up

especially : the process of matching by computer the words of a text with material stored in memory

look up

2 of 2 verb

: to seek for or out

look up a word in the dictionary

look up a friend