beefing (up)

verb

present participle of beef (up)
1
as in strengthening
to increase the ability of (as a muscle) to exert physical force beefed up the walls with iron bars

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in intensifying
to make markedly greater in measure or degree will beef up security for the next few days while the president is in town

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for beefing (up)
  1. strengthening
  2. intensifying
  3. hardening
  4. deepening
  5. enhancing
  6. heightening
  7. stepping up
Verb
  • With California’s coast getting pounded by strong waves amid a strengthening El Niño, residents and government leaders are turning to big rocks and seawalls to protect homes and keep a railroad from falling into the sea.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2026
  • And that’s what happened, strengthening the ayatollah’s grip on power.
    — The Week US, TheWeek, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of strengthening
Verb
  • Currently, the interplay of elevated interest rates and high oil prices is intensifying risk aversion across global markets, suggesting capital outflow pressure on emerging market bonds could persist for some time.
    — , CNBC, 29 Sep. 2026
  • The meeting was held during the United Nations General Assembly’s annual gathering of world leaders, as an intensifying aerial war between Russia and Ukraine showed no sign of slowing.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of intensifying
Verb
  • The specifications hardening around agents are careful about this line.
    — Dr. Aditya Vikram Kashyap, Forbes.com, 22 Sep. 2026
  • September is near the end of the season, so avoid high-nitrogen doses, which can interfere with tuber hardening and storage.
    — Andy Wilcox, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of hardening
Verb
  • London — The United States and China have agreed to slash tariffs on $60 billion worth of goods, deepening efforts to stabilize a frequently testy relationship.
    — Hanna Ziady, CNN Money, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Settler attacks damaged or seized about 160 Palestinian water and sanitation structures this year, deepening shortages that are forcing farmers to abandon fields and threatening local livelihoods.
    — Melanie Lidman, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of deepening
Verb
  • Blakespear said the law is focused on enhancing consumer protections, because many residents and parents looking to purchase e-bikes have ultimately been sold a very different and much less controllable product.
    — Madison Smalstig, Sacbee.com, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Wrangler Wrangler is enhancing the strength of its riding jeans.
    — Angela Velasquez, Footwear News, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of enhancing
Verb
  • Climate change has been heating up Southern California for some time, heightening fire danger and worsening droughts.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Last year’s record-shattering monsoon season is heightening the urgency to invest in climate resilience.
    — Angelica Ang, Fortune, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of heightening
Verb
  • This goes counter to Disney’s official stance, which is a flat denial that Covid had anything to do with one Bob stepping down and another stepping up.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 24 Sep. 2026
  • That means the Horned Frogs’ younger receivers will be tasked with stepping up against an experienced secondary that has picked off quarterbacks four times this season.
    — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of stepping up
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

beefing
beefing (up)
beefs
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Beefing (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/beefing%20%28up%29. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of adventitious

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 2

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All