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

• pursue
• seek
• search (for or out)

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

Read the full report for Bamboo Penny’s by searching for the restaurant on the Kansas inspection lookup. —Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 6 Oct. 2025

Ultimately, more than 5,000 new words appear in the upcoming Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, as well as 1,000 new phrases and idioms, enhanced entries for the top lookups and more than 20,000 additional usage examples for students, professionals and word-lovers across the globe. —Angel Saunders, PEOPLE, 1 Oct. 2025

Verb

From ’20s dandy pin curls on Quinta Brunson and Serena Williams at the Met Gala to Keke Palmer’s ginger pixie, the crop cut has looked up to be this year’s most trending style. —Essence, 10 Oct. 2025

As Alba looks up, Messi has escaped from Timor while the centre-backs are occupied with Villa and Alexis Sanchez. —Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025

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