as in to develop
to produce or bring about especially by long or repeated effort
spent years working up a period novel that was historically accurate in every detail
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 work up
The season is too long to get worked up by three games in August.
—
Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Aug. 2025
Stidham’s going into his third season with Webb and has seen his positional work up close since Webb jumped from playing to coaching after Payton got hired in Denver.
—Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 17 Aug. 2025
Smalltown Boy works up the courage to ask Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) to dance, and now their hands are all over each other, much to the chagrin of Smalltown Boy’s ex, Personal Jesus, who is going through the motions of dancing with Caribbean Queen but keeps looking over his shoulder.
—Literary Hub, 15 Aug. 2025
This has led to a growing number of contract employees who work up to, but not past, the hourly limit.
—Elisabeth Rosenthal, Miami Herald, 12 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for work up
Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Aug. 2025
Stidham’s going into his third season with Webb and has seen his positional work up close since Webb jumped from playing to coaching after Payton got hired in Denver.
—Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 17 Aug. 2025
Smalltown Boy works up the courage to ask Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) to dance, and now their hands are all over each other, much to the chagrin of Smalltown Boy’s ex, Personal Jesus, who is going through the motions of dancing with Caribbean Queen but keeps looking over his shoulder.
—Literary Hub, 15 Aug. 2025
This has led to a growing number of contract employees who work up to, but not past, the hourly limit.
—Elisabeth Rosenthal, Miami Herald, 12 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for work up
Recent Examples of Synonyms for work up
Verb
-
Any thunderstorms that develop could lead to higher wind gusts as well.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
11 Oct. 2025
-
In Mindhunter, the agent interviews Brudos — played by Anderson in season 1 of the series and in season 3 of Monster — to help develop profiling techniques for catching serial killers.—
Emily Blackwood,
PEOPLE,
11 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Those typically involve a winning team, which can forge indelible memories in the biggest curmudgeons among us.—
Chris Branch,
New York Times,
8 Oct. 2025
-
In the spirit of serving its community, the new theater has been designed to forge a sense of inclusion, according to Lythcott.—
Jacqui Palumbo,
CNN Money,
8 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Beyond offering incentives to refer platforms to others, emerging apps have also created ways to bet alongside friends, setting up leaderboards and teams of other users.—
Sasha Rogelberg,
Fortune,
11 Oct. 2025
-
The creation of this content included the use of AI based on templates created, reviewed and edited by journalists in the newsroom.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
11 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
This probably isn’t going to work out.—
Michael Salfino,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
-
All of that has to be worked out.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
5 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Work up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/work%20up. Accessed 12 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share