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 Before this year’s telecast, that movie’s director, Paul Thomas Anderson, had set a record in futility by racking up 11 Oscar nominations without a win, said Sam Adams in Slate. The Week Us, TheWeek, 23 Mar. 2026 Tulsa took the lead for good less than 2 1/2 minutes into the game and the score was 36-24 at halftime, with Popoola racking up nine points. ABC News, 22 Mar. 2026 Spotify’s interactive iDJ feature, introduced in 2023, has roughly 90 million subscribers using it as of the most recent earnings report, with users racking up over four billion hours of time spent on the app. Trevor Laurence Jockims, CNBC, 22 Mar. 2026 Strictly within the realm of football, Kelce is one of the most recognizable athletes in the country’s most-popular sport after racking up 11 selections to the Pro Bowl and the eighth-most catches (1,080) in NFL history. Andrew Greif, NBC news, 9 Mar. 2026 The safety blossomed during his six seasons with the Steelers, racking up five Pro Bowls and three All-Pros. Miami Herald, 9 Mar. 2026 Kachel said Vank’s signature moment so far with the Plainsmen came in the regular season finale last season, when Vank baffled Western Nebraska Community College with eight innings of shutout ball, scattering three hits while racking up 10 strikeouts. Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 2 Mar. 2026 The Bobcats did their damage in the fifth inning, racking up four runs on a series of four hits, capped off with a two-RBI double from outfielder Harley Vestal. Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 1 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for racking up
Verb
  • Kevin Durant fueled the Rockets' (43-28) comeback by scoring 15 of his game-high 40 points in the fourth quarter.
    CBS News, CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026
  • After helping Sweden win the goal medal at the world junior championships in January, Frondell finished strong with Djurgardens, scoring in 10 of 18 regular-season games before his team was eliminated Saturday in a first-round playoff series.
    Matt Carlson, Chicago Tribune, 23 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • That has kept most stars from achieving crossover appeal.
    ABC News, ABC News, 28 Mar. 2026
  • Churchgoers in the 2000s may remember a time when small groups met up for Ramsey’s Financial Peace University in hopes of achieving a debt-free life.
    Bracey Harris, NBC news, 28 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • Frederiksen's Social Democrats received the most votes and were seen winning 38 seats in Denmark's 179-seat parliament, results published early Wednesday showed, compared with 50 seats four years earlier.
    Sam Meredith, CNBC, 25 Mar. 2026
  • The Knicks have feasted on a soft part of their schedule, beating Indiana twice, Utah, Brooklyn and Washington during the winning streak, which came entirely against teams with losing records.
    CBS News, CBS News, 25 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • Liz Breadon, now the City Council president, added at the time that such a mistake could jeopardize an immigrant’s chances of attaining full citizenship.
    Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald, 18 Mar. 2026
  • Oakland’s leaders envision their town attaining similar big-city status.
    Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • But ideas to spur Idaho’s stagnant housing stock — namely through deregulation or preemption of local land use — are gaining steam as the session drags on.
    Mark Dee March 28, Idaho Statesman, 28 Mar. 2026
  • Synthetic embryo models, such as blastoids and gastruloids, which replicate key stages in mammalian embryogenesis in vitro, are slowly gaining traction as viable means of ex-vivo development.
    Srishti Gupta, Interesting Engineering, 28 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • The guard’s eyes widened when presented with the concept that the Bulls technically still had a shot at making the playoffs, at least for another game.
    Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 28 Mar. 2026
  • The Education Department's notices to borrowers beginning Friday will direct them to enroll in a plan and resume making payments as soon as this summer.
    CBS News, CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Racking up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/racking%20up. Accessed 29 Mar. 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