as in to quiet (down)
to stop talking
the schoolboy ordered his mates to belt up about the prank
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of belt up
In my testing, the Rucker 4.0 was comfortable without its hip belt up to around 30 pounds.
—
Ian Graber-Stiehl, Outside, 5 Dec. 2025
The evening’s co-main event bout between Raymond Ford and Thomas Mattice also has a belt up for grabs.
—Trent Reinsmith, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
Going back home Sunday looks nice, except for the Lake Effect Snow belt up in New York, Pennsylvania and Michigan.
—Amanda Castro, Newsweek, 26 Nov. 2024
So getting some of those at-bats under his belt up here will be part of that.
—Nick Piecoro, The Arizona Republic, 28 Aug. 2022
Canelo Alvarez of Mexico (57-1-2, 39 KOs) steps back into the ring to try and conquer yet another weight class, this time putting on several pounds for a matchup against current WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol of Russia (19-0, 11 KOs) who is putting his belt up for grabs in this bout.
—oregonlive, 7 May 2022
Designed to attach to a belt up to 2½ inches wide or to a PALS system, the pouch comes very close to duplicating the performance of an OWB holster.
—Mike Dickerson, Outdoor Life, 23 Oct. 2020
Ian Graber-Stiehl, Outside, 5 Dec. 2025
The evening’s co-main event bout between Raymond Ford and Thomas Mattice also has a belt up for grabs.
—Trent Reinsmith, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
Going back home Sunday looks nice, except for the Lake Effect Snow belt up in New York, Pennsylvania and Michigan.
—Amanda Castro, Newsweek, 26 Nov. 2024
So getting some of those at-bats under his belt up here will be part of that.
—Nick Piecoro, The Arizona Republic, 28 Aug. 2022
Canelo Alvarez of Mexico (57-1-2, 39 KOs) steps back into the ring to try and conquer yet another weight class, this time putting on several pounds for a matchup against current WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol of Russia (19-0, 11 KOs) who is putting his belt up for grabs in this bout.
—oregonlive, 7 May 2022
Designed to attach to a belt up to 2½ inches wide or to a PALS system, the pouch comes very close to duplicating the performance of an OWB holster.
—Mike Dickerson, Outdoor Life, 23 Oct. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for belt up
Verb
-
Locals were detained and quickly released as investigative leads dried up.—
Richard Winton,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Mar. 2026
-
Car sales in the largest global auto market fell 14% in January year-on-year as government subsidies dried up.—
semafor.com,
semafor.com,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The agents told him to ‘shut up’ four times.—
Ryan Oehrli
March 6,
Charlotte Observer,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Annette finally goes into the ocean and shuts up.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Less sweat-trapping than many synthetic jackets, the Oreus kept me from clamming up while ski-touring in five-degree temps and dissipated sweat quickly when worn after strenuous climbs.—
Kelly Bastone,
Outside,
10 Feb. 2026
-
But when co-host Maria McErlane looked for details, Norton clammed up.—
Joseph Wilkinson,
Mercury News,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Inside, the rooms were intimate, jammed, dim, and hushed.—
Nicole Krauss,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Feb. 2026
-
Now, all is hushed and warm, and there is marble beneath our feet.—
Caroline Law,
TheWeek,
9 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Belt up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/belt%20up. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
