markup

1 of 2

noun

mark·​up ˈmärk-ˌəp 

1

: an amount added to the cost price to determine the selling price

broadly : profit

2

: a U.S. Congressional committee session at which a bill is put into final form before it is reported out

mark up

2 of 2

verb

marked up; marking up; marks up

transitive verb

: to put a markup on

Examples of markup in a Sentence

Noun

The retail markup on their products is 25 percent.

selling used cars at high markups

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

This is a bold swing for a company that started out buying generic drugs and — while sidestepping pharmacy benefit managers — reselling them at a 15% markup. — Ed Silverman, STAT, 21 Oct. 2026

If the actives match, the markup is paying for packaging, scent and brand positioning — legitimate reasons to buy, but worth naming out loud. — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 21 Oct. 2026

Verb

Lawyers had to mark up a hypothetical patent that, according to the blog post, contained many substantive and stylistic errors. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2026

There is Adnan, steadily and unhesitatingly marking up pages in ink, or scraping pigment onto canvases with a palette knife, creating simplified, color-rich forms drawn from nature and memory. — Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 30 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1916, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1868, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing markup

• hypertext markup language
• markup language

Rhymes for markup

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

Kids Definition

markup

1 of 2 noun

mark·​up ˈmär-ˌkəp 

: an amount added to the cost price of an article to set the selling price

mark up

2 of 2 verb

(ˈ)mär-ˈkəp

: to put a higher price on