knock up

Definition of knock upnext
British
as in to wake
to cause to stop sleeping I asked the clerk at the hotel to knock me up at 7:00 a.m.

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 knock up Margo’s Got Money Troubles is the story of college freshman and aspiring writer Margo (Elle Fanning) who gets knocked up by her English professor (Michael Angarano) and decides to drop out and keep the baby. Literary Hub, 28 May 2026 Elle Fanning stars as Margo, a young college student who gets knocked up by one of her professors and decides to move back home and have the baby. Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026 At fine-dining Le Grand Large, a rotation of visiting chefs knock up Provencal dishes like red snapper and Bouillabaisse. Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 12 May 2026 The pair collided with such force that Dumoulin got knocked up about two feet in the air before landing hard on his padded backside. Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 27 Apr. 2026 Meanwhile, while Miranda busies herself with building a pageant empire, her husband Ray, a pill-popping nurse, has knocked up the 18-year-old granddaughter of one of his hospice patients. Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 28 Aug. 2025 Julia, worried, maintains that she’s not knocked up. Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 15 Aug. 2025 With 200 hp worth of empty space to play with before knocking up against the 600-hp V12 Verado, Mercury is dialing up the overall output of the V10 range by adding a new 425-hp variant as the flagship of the family. New Atlas, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for knock up
Verb
  • Some of Iris Nemani’s earliest memories of the arts have to do with her parents waking her up — as a very young child — late at night to watch classic movie musicals on TV.
    Jim Harrington, Mercury News, 29 May 2026
  • The bitter, woke drumbeat is not working any more.
    Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald, 28 May 2026
Verb
  • Jasper had awakened, and Adele set him down.
    Jonathan Franzen, New Yorker, 1 June 2026
  • On The Charmings, Snow White and husband Prince Charming (Christopher Rich) awaken from a thousand-year spell and try to adapt to life in present-day Burbank, with the princess working in a department store.
    Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 30 May 2026
Verb
  • Houston’s pitching staff awoke on Monday with the sport’s highest ERA, a byproduct of injuries to most of their season-opening rotation and the ineffectiveness of those who’ve stayed healthy.
    Chandler Rome, New York Times, 26 May 2026
  • Abdul Begawala said his wife awoke early Tuesday morning to the sound of gunshots.
    Claire Murphy, Chicago Tribune, 22 May 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Knock up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/knock%20up. Accessed 5 Jun. 2026.

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