stack up

verb

stacked up; stacking up; stacks up

intransitive verb

1

: to add up : total

2

: measure up, compare

—usually used with against

Synonyms

• compare (with)
• measure up (to)

Examples of stack up in a Sentence

those newspapers have been stacking up in the basement since we moved here

Recent Examples on the Web

As projects get greenlit and the pipeline of content begins to flow, Secuoya Studios will be looking to make the numbers stack up with pre-sales. —Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 23 Sep. 2025

Over time, those stacked up into satellite radio interviews, then Blender magazine spreads, then Fox News spots and eventually phone calls from Universal. —Chris Cardillo, Rolling Stone, 23 Sep. 2025

Cost-wise, how does Little Village Grill stack up? —Sunny Hubler, Charlotte Observer, 23 Sep. 2025

Bank of America looked at the history of great bull markets and crashes, assessing how the Magnificent Seven stacks up to past Wall Street speculative frenzies. —Yun Li, CNBC, 19 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1896, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for stack up

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

Kids Definition

stack up

verb

: measure up sense 2, compare

see how you stack up against the champion