prop up

phrasal verb

propped up; propping up; props up

1

: to stop (something) from falling or slipping by placing something under or against it

We propped up the beams with long boards.

propped the plant stems up

2

: to give help, encouragement, or support to (someone)

His faith propped him up in times of crisis.

Examples of prop up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

With its passage, county staff have 45 days to study how the county could prop up the clinics and how they would be paid for and staffed. —Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Nov. 2025

Schulman told Bloomberg the increase in comparable sales was the result of some consumers adding sides or ordering more premium proteins like steak, suggesting wealthier consumers are propping up Cava as others pull back. —Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 5 Nov. 2025

Trump spent part of his hour onstage celebrating rolling back business regulations and propping up the crypto industry. —Claire Heddles, Miami Herald, 5 Nov. 2025

Venezuela's military is focused on protecting the country's sovereignty, propped up by Russian, Chinese and Iranian equipment and ill-suited to any foreign operations, according to analysts. —Ellie Cook, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2025

Rhymes for prop up

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