perking (up)

verb

present participle of perk (up)
1
as in brightening
to become glad or hopeful we perked up once the sun came out

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in lifting
to move from a lower to a higher place or position the dog tilts her head and perks up her ears whenever someone speaks to her

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for perking (up)
  1. brightening
  2. lifting
  3. looking up
  4. raising
  5. glowing
  6. taking up
  7. elevating
Verb
  • Some also have other antiaging superstars like retinol, brightening ingredients like vitamin C, antioxidants like vitamin E, or niacinamide (a form of vitamin B3) to strengthen the skin barrier.
    — Christa Joanna Lee, Glamour, 23 Oct. 2026
  • There aren't any huge economic reports on the docket either, brightening the spotlight on the stream of earnings updates.
    — Zev Fima,Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of brightening
Verb
  • The reduction in missions lifting off from Florida has slowed Falcon 9's Starlink launch cadence considerably.
    — Josh Dinner, Space.com, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Record-high diesel prices pushed freight off the highway and onto the railroads in the third quarter, lifting CSX, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern to record revenue.
    — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of lifting
Verb
  • The iPhone Duo can run two apps on screen at the same time, which was useful for situations that involved looking up information or viewing content in multiple apps.
    — Lisa Eadicicco, CNN Money, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Now 23 himself, Miller has two 20-year-old rookies, Hannes Steinbach and Christian Anderson, looking up to him.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of looking up
Verb
  • And already this week, at least one county official is raising questions about why his locality is on the DOJ's list.
    — Miles Parks, NPR, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Privacy concerns The very same design elements that make Muse so appealing to AI newcomers are also raising privacy concerns.
    — Andrew R. Chow, Time, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of raising
Verb
  • For the best views look 40-90 degrees away from the radiant, where the glowing trains left in the wake of the fast-moving meteors will be at their longest.
    — Anthony Wood, Space.com, 17 Oct. 2026
  • But the phone’s first public testers have given glowing feedback.
    — Andrew R. Chow, Time, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of glowing
Verb
  • Feel free to skip the pep talk and ask what's been taking up their energy lately.
    — Vanessa Van Edwards, Contributor, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Brittin warned upon taking up the top job in May that the organization would need to take drastic measures if his company is to come out the other side of this evolve-or-die period for traditional broadcasters.
    — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of taking up
Verb
  • Second, the massive capital requirements associated with artificial intelligence infrastructure buildouts have intensified competition for market liquidity, leading investors to demand higher yields and further elevating corporate financing costs.
    — , CNBC, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The Timberland Field Boot in Brown Full-grain/Camo features a Gore-Tex membrane, elevating the typical waterproof construction of the Field Boot with an even more protective liner that’s also breathable.
    — Riley Jones, Footwear News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of elevating
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

perkiness
perking (up)
perks
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Perking (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perking%20%28up%29. Accessed 25 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of emissary

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 23

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

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

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
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
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All