1
as in thrilling
to cause a pleasurable stimulation of the feelings of
the crowd was pumped up by the band's rocking performance
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in increasing
to make greater in size, amount, or number
that pop diva is trying to pump up album sales with an extended publicity tour
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pumping up
Each one of the over 300 locations had to be 300 times less likely to fail than if there had been only one, pumping up the design, manufacturing and testing requirements – and inflating the cost.
—
Martin Elvis, The Conversation, 9 Jan. 2026
True, pumping up the dosage can give women an almost euphoric high, Christmas says.
—Lisa Jarvis, Twin Cities, 25 Dec. 2025
Different members took turns pumping up the team.
—Bryan West, USA Today, 12 Dec. 2025
That combination of offering greater value to consumers while pumping up a long-dormant marketing muscle is the sort of thing upon which a movement may be founded.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 12 Dec. 2025
Springsteen was reportedly a frequent visitor on the set of Deliver Me From Nowhere — undoubtedly pumping up the extras, and presumably stressing out the actors.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 27 Oct. 2025
August 20, 2025 – Bryan Danielson pumping up the crowd on AEW Dynamite.
—Jeremy Hanna, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Sep. 2025
Even the normally surefire element of a score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, with its blasts of dissonance pumping up the squirm factor, adds to the heavy-going effect of a movie that seems to go out of its way to be grating.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 29 Aug. 2025
The company started pumping up its website during the pandemic when people were not shopping stores.
—David Moin, Footwear News, 27 Aug. 2025
Martin Elvis, The Conversation, 9 Jan. 2026
True, pumping up the dosage can give women an almost euphoric high, Christmas says.
—Lisa Jarvis, Twin Cities, 25 Dec. 2025
Different members took turns pumping up the team.
—Bryan West, USA Today, 12 Dec. 2025
That combination of offering greater value to consumers while pumping up a long-dormant marketing muscle is the sort of thing upon which a movement may be founded.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 12 Dec. 2025
Springsteen was reportedly a frequent visitor on the set of Deliver Me From Nowhere — undoubtedly pumping up the extras, and presumably stressing out the actors.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 27 Oct. 2025
August 20, 2025 – Bryan Danielson pumping up the crowd on AEW Dynamite.
—Jeremy Hanna, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Sep. 2025
Even the normally surefire element of a score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, with its blasts of dissonance pumping up the squirm factor, adds to the heavy-going effect of a movie that seems to go out of its way to be grating.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 29 Aug. 2025
The company started pumping up its website during the pandemic when people were not shopping stores.
—David Moin, Footwear News, 27 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pumping up
Verb
-
The Hoosiers won the CFP national title Monday night in a thrilling win 27-21 win over Miami.—
Darren Cooper,
Forbes.com,
20 Jan. 2026
-
The 49ers earned a thrilling wild card round victory by a score of 23-19 over the Philadelphia Eagles last Sunday, highlighted by wide receiver Jauan Jennings, a former high school quarterback, throwing a trick play touchdown to McCaffrey.—
Graham Womack,
Sacbee.com,
17 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Still, mainstream Democrats and the Democratic Party seemed inclined to hitch their fates to many of the issues which currently define a politics of domination, like threatening Venezuela or increasing ICE funding, even though for the first time, more voters want to abolish ICE than to keep it.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Jan. 2026
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But the increasing state support comes amid a dramatic overall decline.—
Gene Maddaus,
Variety,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
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For Harrington and her husband Dante, the thought of triplets was shocking but exciting all the same.—
Daniella Gray,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Over the years, Harold’s Chicken grew far beyond its original location, expanding into a regional brand with restaurants across eight states.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
16 Jan. 2026
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Mitsubishi is looking to capitalize on rising power needs from data centers, manufacturing, as well as LNG exports, by expanding in the the world's largest gas market, citing domestic consumption, production, exports, and further demand growth.—
Lim Hui Jie,
CNBC,
16 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Kay, of course, is referencing Whitney turning on Jonah by ousting him from his own company.—
Chris O'Falt,
IndieWire,
14 Jan. 2026
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Far from turning on her, the audience awards her with a head-spinning third applause break in just 50 seconds.—
John Roy,
Vulture,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Despite re-accelerating growth while expanding its AI narrative, NET has failed to convert fundamentals into durable upside.—
Tony Zhang,
CNBC,
14 Jan. 2026
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But for large industrial firms—for OEMs of turbines, compressors, chillers, heavy machinery—the real value is in accelerating engineering itself.—
Paul Eremenko,
Fortune,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
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These power lines are primarily to supply huge amounts of electricity to data centers powering artificial intelligence technologies and oil-and-gas companies electrifying their operations.—
Claire Hao,
Houston Chronicle,
7 Jan. 2026
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After an electrifying first half of the season, Celebrini has made the Canadian team’s roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina, according to ESPN.—
Curtis Pashelka,
Mercury News,
31 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Yet there are risks to boosting the economy through interest-rate cuts and bigger tax refunds.—
Aimee Picchi,
CBS News,
22 Jan. 2026
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Los Angeles claimed $320 million in revenue-boosting activity.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pumping up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pumping%20up. Accessed 22 Jan. 2026.
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