1
as in looking up
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 inspiring
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bucking up
Verb
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Sienna comes home On March 23 a picture popped up in the Illinois group text message – Sienna looking up at the camera, snug in her yellow jammies.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
3 Apr. 2026 -
And make no mistake, the competition isn’t just on the field this year, as the Yankees are looking up at their counterparts at Citi Field who were just voted to have the best baseball stadium food in USA Today’s most recent Readers’ Choice Awards.—
Andy Clayton,
New York Daily News,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Namira lives in East Elmhurst, where several bus stops had recently been removed, disrupting her mother’s commute to Times Square and inspiring her to action.—
Molly Fischer,
New Yorker,
10 Apr. 2026
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People certainly came often when the space belonged to Dexter’s, a happy hour stronghold here in Hannibal Square for ages, inspiring romantic-memory flexes among locals since the space shuttered in 2019.—
Amy Drew Thompson,
The Orlando Sentinel,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The key window is April 10-20, when the comet is brightening but not yet too deeply embedded in the sun's glare.—
Jamie Carter,
Space.com,
10 Apr. 2026
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Ferulic acid boosts that brightening trio, while niacinamide and tangerine peel extract help even things out over time.—
Christa Joanna Lee,
Allure,
25 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Former clients described Motta encouraging people to get surgeries, and others discussed one particularly shameless episode in which a large church van, crammed with prospective plaintiffs, intentionally collided with a truck.—
Patrick Radden Keefe,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
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Reframe aging as a life stage of capability and purpose rather than decline, encouraging earlier conversations across families, workplaces, and communities.—
Aimee DeCamillo,
Fortune,
12 Apr. 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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Cite this Entry
“Bucking up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bucking%20up. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
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