racking up

Definition of racking upnext
present participle of rack up
1
as in scoring
to gain (as points or runs in a game) as credit towards one's total number of points having racked up a huge number of points in the short program, the figure skater would have to have a disastrous long program in order to miss out on a medal

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2

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 racking up Grant recently broke the program’s single-season record with her 34th and closed the regular season with 35, while Woolery is the fifth NCAA player with 100 or more RBIs in a season, racking up 106. Marisa Ingemi, Los Angeles Times, 4 May 2026 Bitadze made his presence felt on both ends by racking up six points and four rebounds. Jason Beede, The Orlando Sentinel, 2 May 2026 Connecticut failed to save properly for pensions for seven decades prior to 2011, racking up tens of billions in unfunded obligations. Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 2 May 2026 The North Carolina human resources executive spent two months racking up credits through web tutorials after work in 2024, then raced through 11 online classes at the University of Maine at Presque Isle in four weeks. Todd Wallack, Washington Post, 19 Apr. 2026 Legislators understand that the way to increase affordability is to shine a light on the ways in which those companies have been racking up record profits while government regulators are left in the dark. Allysson Bornt, New York Daily News, 19 Apr. 2026 Meanwhile, Operation Sideswipe kept expanding and racking up prosecutorial victories, building off the work of private-sector investigators and lawyers for the trucking companies. Patrick Radden Keefe, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026 Lemon won the Biletnikoff Award for the best receiver in college football this past season for a reason, after racking up 1,156 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns. Luca Evans, Denver Post, 13 Apr. 2026 After burning through their savings, the entrepreneurs turned to credit cards, racking up $100,000 in debt each. Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 12 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for racking up
Verb
  • Brunson took the opening that gave him and ripped the game open from there, scoring 14 of the Knicks’ first 33 points and pushing them to a 33-25 lead after one.
    C.J. Holmes, New York Daily News, 5 May 2026
  • Hao-Yu Lee chipped in a run-scoring single.
    CBS News, CBS News, 4 May 2026
Verb
  • If Pan American Airways represented, at its height, victory and suavity, the country achieving a kind of European state of grace, then Spirit was the exact opposite—synonymous with the rowdy and the rude at the heart of the American character.
    Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 9 May 2026
  • What may sound like a dizzying lifestyle to some to Chiles is par for the course in achieving her loftiest goals across sports and beyond.
    Marquise Francis, NBC news, 9 May 2026
Verb
  • Aspen Wooten, a talented tennis prodigy who moved from Memphis to Lake Nona with her family as a ninth grader, had accomplished just about everything available in her four-year high school career — including winning more than 100 matches.
    Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 Apr. 2026
  • Schindler also put down the winning kill in both games for the Knights (16-5, 1-1).
    Jeff Vorva, Chicago Tribune, 29 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Success will be determined around that goal — either attaining it or at minimum, looking like a real threat to do so.
    Varun Shankar, Houston Chronicle, 4 May 2026
  • Granted, his policy regarding Iran not attaining a nuclear weapon is a good one.
    Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 3 May 2026
Verb
  • One approach gaining support is to slow the displacement of workers with new taxes on AI services and investments.
    Editorial, Boston Herald, 10 May 2026
  • Investigators determined that Skuce hired Logan Delp to kill Sheppard in order to prevent him from gaining custody or further visitation with his child.
    Michael Sinkewicz, FOXNews.com, 10 May 2026
Verb
  • In stark contrast to the teenage social scene once synonymous with malls, many of Lincolnwood’s shoppers seemed to come there alone, making beelines for the still-open Old Navy or Victoria Secret without ever removing their headphones.
    Audrey Pachuta, Chicago Tribune, 9 May 2026
  • The Moon in Aquarius moves through your 9th House and trines Venus in your sign, making learning and creative thinking especially fertile.
    Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 9 May 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Racking up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/racking%20up. Accessed 10 May. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

More from Merriam-Webster