power-up

noun

pow·​er-up ˈpau̇(-ə)r-ˌəp 

variants or less commonly powerup or power up

plural power-ups also powerups or power ups

1

: an item in a video game that makes a player's character more effective by enhancing an attribute (such as speed, health, or strength) or conferring an ability

… a bunch of power-ups at your disposal to help overcome the odds, including the Super Bell—which gives you catlike powers and the ability to climb walls.

—Jon Bitner

You can use the direction keys on your keyboard to navigate Pac-Man through the maze, gobbling up spheres and power ups while avoiding ghosts.

—Cassidy Ward

After you collect enough gems and level up, you're able to select another weapon or powerup.

—Kris Holt

2

: the act of beginning to operate or causing something to operate

The drive is instantly recognized and ready to go on power-up.

—Dwight Silverman

… on power up, the user will experience the most rapid start-up time ever …

—Business Wire

Examples of power-up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie just scored a power-up two months after its release. —Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 8 June 2026

This screen is a power-up for your eyes. —Juhi Wadia, PC Magazine, 1 June 2026

But Eriksson Ek will be back, and the issue here is whether there is room for McCarron and Nico Sturm on a team that needs to power-up offensively somewhere. —John Shipley, Twin Cities, 20 May 2026

This title stars Mario and his friends and blends the series power-ups and characters with the core rules of the sport. —Gieson Cacho, Mercury News, 7 May 2026

The film’s surplus of action and chase scenes follows the same rigid formula of swooping camera movements and game power-up deus ex machinas that no sequence ever proves particularly exciting. —Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 31 Mar. 2026

Despite the prior game being a pack-in title for the PS5, Team Asobi’s full-sized sequel brims with inventive platforming, whimsical power-ups, and a kind of lighthearted fun that recalls the best of Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon. —Sheena Vasani, The Verge, 28 Feb. 2026

Players match cards to build bridges while using disruptive WILD power-ups to sabotage opponents, block paths and create chaos. —Arushi Jacob, Variety, 27 Feb. 2026

The Joker-less lineup has remained in the mix due to Jamal Murray hero ball and a Peyton Watson power-up. —Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1979, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for power-up

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

Kids Definition

power up

verb

: to cause to operate

power up the computer