buck up
To become encouraged, reinvigorated, or cheerfulTo become encouraged, reinvigorated, or cheerful; to summon one's courage or spirits; to pluck up courage.
Translations
1 languagesMeaning
7 senses(idiomatic, intransitive)To become encouraged, reinvigorated, or cheerful; to summon one's courage or spirits; to pluck up courage.
I realized I needed to buck up and tackle the problem head-on.
(idiomatic, transitive)To encourage; to hearten.
I knew I had to try and buck up the rest of my team as well.
встряхну́тьvstrjaxnútʹ, оживи́тьoživítʹ, приободри́тьpriobodrítʹ
(idiomatic, intransitive)To do better.
You better buck up or you'll never make it.
More meanings 4
(colloquial, idiomatic, transitive)To pass on to higher authority for resolution. See also pass the buck.
He started bucking up everything to management when he didn't get a raise.
He just bucked everything risky up to management.
(dated, idiomatic, intransitive)To dress oneself up smartly; compare (obsolete) buck ("a fop, dandy")
(obsolete)To hurry up.
(idiomatic, slang, transitive)To hit or fight (someone).
- gain courage
Forms
bucks up, bucking up, bucked up, bucked upirregular
| Base form | buck up · to buck up |
|---|---|
| 3rd person singular | bucks up |
| Present participle | bucking up |
| Past simple | bucked up |
| Past participle | bucked up |
Tenses
buck up · bucked up · will buck up · have bucked upPhrasal verbs
6 phrasal verbs- buck inTo align or sight an instrument (such as a theodolite or level) precisely between two marks or points for accurate measurement.
- buck upTo become encouraged, reinvigorated, or cheerful; to summon one's courage or spirits; to pluck up courage.
- buck up toTo rebel against (someone or something); to stand up to or struggle against (someone or something).
- buck forUS, colloquialTo strive for persistently; to try hard to obtain (a promotion, raise, etc.).
- buck downslangTo defeat (someone) in a challenge; to beat up or destroy (someone).
Synonyms
1 synonyms- gain courage:take heart
Lessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Phrasal verbs: introduction — Because it is a phrasal verb
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.