stack up

verb

stacked up; stacking up; stacks up

intransitive verb

1

: to add up

Cars were beginning to stack up behind the bus.

2

: to be in a particular state or situation

Here's how things stack up today.

3

: measure up, compare

—usually used with against

How does he stack up against the other job candidates?

Synonyms of stack up

• 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

There were literally chickens in the kitchen, and crates of beer stacked up everywhere, and the bedding was horrible. —Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 11 Dec. 2025

These losses stack up as goods are touched repeatedly in warehouses, linger in distribution centers, or are written off entirely. —Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 10 Dec. 2025

After a month of voting on best places for wintery activities, here's where metro Detroit places stacked up. —Natalie Davies, Freep.com, 10 Dec. 2025

Indiana has an impressive road win at Oregon and was pushed to the brink at Penn State, but the real test is how the Hoosiers and Curt Cignetti stack up against a Buckeyes team that pummeled them 38-15 in Columbus last season. —The Athletic College Football Staff, New York Times, 7 Dec. 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