punched up; punching up; punches up
: to give energy or forcefulness to
jokes added to punch up a speech
Examples of punch-up in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Fran Hoepfner, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2024
In the hands of the endlessly inventive comedian, the tale of a boy who pulls himself up by his bootstraps and seeks out fame and fortune becomes a madcap delight complete with a zingy script, cartoonish punch-ups, collapsing sets, and a heady dose of magical realism.
—Radhika Seth, Vogue, 22 Feb. 2024
Songs like her new single, the LP’s title track, which came together in a late-night punch-up session with Alexander 23, showcase the album’s unflinching emotional honesty.
—Brittany Spanos, Rolling Stone, 22 June 2023
When Reaves hit Gustav Lindström later in the game, Ben Chiarot responded by dropping the gloves for a brief punch-up.
—Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press, 18 Apr. 2023
Kim Severson, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2024
A bit of fish sauce can be added to the shrimp pasta to punch up the briny flavor of the seafood.
—Sunset Magazine, 22 Mar. 2024
Diversity in video games isn’t going anywhere, and the practice of hiring consultants to punch up narratives certainly isn’t going to change.
—Ash Parrish, The Verge, 18 Mar. 2024
In the morning of the earth’s creation, 385 million years ago, before Príncipe's fist of rock punched up from the ocean floor, the fish walked out of the sea on its fins.
—Catherine Fairweather, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Mar. 2024
Halibut is elevated by the fruity umami combination of white miso and good olive oil; striped bass is punched up with spicy za’atar.
—Hugh Garvey, Sunset Magazine, 8 Feb. 2024
Pay a monthly fee, upload a well-mixed track, and in a minute, the system spits back a song that hits modern loudness standards and is punched up with additional clarity, EQ, stereo width, and dynamics processing.
—Nate Anderson, Ars Technica, 6 Feb. 2024
Studios summon him to punch up dialogue or deepen a character or untangle a contorted third act.
—Cheri Lucas Rowlands, Longreads, 22 Jan. 2024
Recruiting him to punch up her speeches for her presidential election campaign, the two travel the world on a diplomatic tour while also discovering sparks between them.
—Lia Beck, EW.com, 12 Jan. 2024
Noun
The book is a loving punch-up, dark and biting, about how the film industry makes and breaks its own, but there’s nothing better than a comeback story.
—Fran Hoepfner, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2024
In the hands of the endlessly inventive comedian, the tale of a boy who pulls himself up by his bootstraps and seeks out fame and fortune becomes a madcap delight complete with a zingy script, cartoonish punch-ups, collapsing sets, and a heady dose of magical realism.
—Radhika Seth, Vogue, 22 Feb. 2024
Songs like her new single, the LP’s title track, which came together in a late-night punch-up session with Alexander 23, showcase the album’s unflinching emotional honesty.
—Brittany Spanos, Rolling Stone, 22 June 2023
When Reaves hit Gustav Lindström later in the game, Ben Chiarot responded by dropping the gloves for a brief punch-up.
—Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press, 18 Apr. 2023
Verb
At Good Hot Fish in Asheville, N.C., shredded green cabbage stars in a pancake punched up with sorghum hot sauce.
—Kim Severson, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2024
A bit of fish sauce can be added to the shrimp pasta to punch up the briny flavor of the seafood.
—Sunset Magazine, 22 Mar. 2024
Diversity in video games isn’t going anywhere, and the practice of hiring consultants to punch up narratives certainly isn’t going to change.
—Ash Parrish, The Verge, 18 Mar. 2024
In the morning of the earth’s creation, 385 million years ago, before Príncipe's fist of rock punched up from the ocean floor, the fish walked out of the sea on its fins.
—Catherine Fairweather, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Mar. 2024
Halibut is elevated by the fruity umami combination of white miso and good olive oil; striped bass is punched up with spicy za’atar.
—Hugh Garvey, Sunset Magazine, 8 Feb. 2024
Pay a monthly fee, upload a well-mixed track, and in a minute, the system spits back a song that hits modern loudness standards and is punched up with additional clarity, EQ, stereo width, and dynamics processing.
—Nate Anderson, Ars Technica, 6 Feb. 2024
Studios summon him to punch up dialogue or deepen a character or untangle a contorted third act.
—Cheri Lucas Rowlands, Longreads, 22 Jan. 2024
Recruiting him to punch up her speeches for her presidential election campaign, the two travel the world on a diplomatic tour while also discovering sparks between them.
—Lia Beck, EW.com, 12 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'punch-up.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near punch-up
Cite this Entry
“Punch-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/punch-up. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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