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
David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 5 Feb. 2026
But comics depend on feedback – punch-ups from fellow comedians and reactions from audiences – iterating jokes in the same way lean startups may innovate new products.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 25 Sep. 2025
Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 21 Feb. 2026
Heels will punch up the extremes of these opposing silhouettes in a nice way, too.
—Alison Syrett Cleary, InStyle, 18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for punch-up
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Noun
The vibe and verve are like Scott Pilgrim vs. the World meets Repo Man, but the material needed an extra punch-up at script stage.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 5 Feb. 2026
But comics depend on feedback – punch-ups from fellow comedians and reactions from audiences – iterating jokes in the same way lean startups may innovate new products.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 25 Sep. 2025
Verb
Hellebores punch up its springy appeal.
—Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 21 Feb. 2026
Heels will punch up the extremes of these opposing silhouettes in a nice way, too.
—Alison Syrett Cleary, InStyle, 18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for punch-up
Cite this Entry
“Punch-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/punch-up. Accessed 24 Feb. 2026.
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