1
as in to brighten
to become glad or hopeful
buck up, kids, it's not so bad as you're making it out to be
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to encourage
to fill with courage or strength of purpose
a surprise presidential visit to buck up the troops
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of buck up
And then, over the course of the six episodes, Julie does encourage him to buck up at a little bit.
—
Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 25 July 2025
The outlook Going forward, will Brightline generate enough revenue to buck up its reserves and make a profit over the long term?
—David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 27 May 2025
Dallas keeps bringing up last year’s six-game win over Colorado in an apparent effort to buck up themselves and their despondent fans, who are rending their garments over a meaningless seven-game losing streak to end the season.
—Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2025
The small-town infrastructure was starting to buck up against NASCAR’s ascending popularity — something racing officials wanted to capitalize on by building state-of-the-art tracks out West.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 18 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for buck up
Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 25 July 2025
The outlook Going forward, will Brightline generate enough revenue to buck up its reserves and make a profit over the long term?
—David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 27 May 2025
Dallas keeps bringing up last year’s six-game win over Colorado in an apparent effort to buck up themselves and their despondent fans, who are rending their garments over a meaningless seven-game losing streak to end the season.
—Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2025
The small-town infrastructure was starting to buck up against NASCAR’s ascending popularity — something racing officials wanted to capitalize on by building state-of-the-art tracks out West.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 18 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for buck up
Recent Examples of Synonyms for buck up
Verb
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Looking for a low-commitment way to brighten up your hair for spring?—
Grace McCarty,
Glamour,
4 Feb. 2026
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In the bedroom, rather than doing their best to brighten up the room, which is small and has only one window, Adams and Tolles leaned into the room’s cavernous energy and painted it dark blue.—
Lina Abascal,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The numbers have been slowly ticking up for over a year – a rare bit of good news for a government that has spent billions of dollars for more than a decade encouraging people to do just that.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
7 Feb. 2026
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Guests are encouraged to bring camp chairs or blankets.—
Ana Gutierrez,
Austin American Statesman,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The driver turned on his mobile hot spot so Piro could look up the hotel’s address.—
Nathan Diller,
USA Today,
4 Feb. 2026
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As vehicles pass by, the reader takes a photo of the back of the car, collecting the license plate number that can be used to look up the vehicle registration.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
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While it was made in the ‘90s, the collection (which showed slip dresses, shirts with undulating ruffles, and jacquard silk jackets constructed to look permanently burst-open) was inspired by the romance between Napoleon Bonaparte and his wife Josephine.—
Leah Dolan,
CNN Money,
6 Feb. 2026
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The work was inspired by cephalopods such as octopuses, which can rapidly alter their skin’s appearance and texture to blend into their surroundings or communicate.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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That leads to high temperatures, which create a glowing protostar due to the rapid (kinetic) motion of the internal gas particles, and eventually, after a few tens of millions of years, the core temperatures rise high enough (above 4 million K or so) that nuclear fusion of hydrogen begins.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
6 Feb. 2026
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Now imagine the same with some of those teary eyes angled down toward glowing screens, while others frame the bride with their phones.—
Nikita Khanna,
Vogue,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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It can also be used as a bench, bearing up to 355 pounds.—
Caitlyn Martyn
may earn a commission if you buy through our referral links. This content was created by a team that works independently from the Fox newsroom.,
FOXNews.com,
11 Aug. 2025
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Harriet remembered there was something: inexpressibly affecting in the aspect of the frail little creature who had done such wonderful things, and who was able to bear up, with so bright an eye and so composed a countenance, under not only such a weight of sorrow, but such a prospect of solitude.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Early on, an extended flashback revives Audrey and her brother’s childhood in a household with an alcoholic father.—
Carlos Aguilar,
Variety,
1 Feb. 2026
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Thirty years ago, the firestorm over a 21-day shutdown revived Bill Clinton's presidency and grievously wounded Newt Gingrich's speakership.—
Susan Page,
USA Today,
1 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Buck up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/buck%20up. Accessed 8 Feb. 2026.
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