to build up
10
3.2
- phrasal verb
- /bɪld ʌp/
- Specialized
:
urbanizar
- They hope to build up the community by constructing affordable housing for families.
Examples
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We'll build up a land down there of free men and free women and free children and freedom.
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To do well in social media, you have to build up a genuine profile.
Blog text (19) -
And now what we need to do is build up the rest of this system.
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We're building up the American dream.
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They have a very ambitious plans to build up their nuclear industry.
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It's unbelievable, especially when you think about the childcare center he was planning to build up in Harlem.
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They gave it to us for free because tomorrow they're demolishing the hotel to build up some condos.
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The city plans to build up the waterfront by adding new parks and restaurants.
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The government allocated funds to build up the infrastructure in rural areas.
Synonyms
259
2.8
To make land or an area ready for a new use like shops
8
4.7
To change how land is used, often replacing old buildings with new ones
To make a place bigger or stronger by adding parts
Antonyms
How Developed
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to gradually increase or accumulate' is directly derivable from combining 'build' (to construct/put together) with 'up' (indicating increase or augmentation); the particle 'up' contributes a clear sense of growth or strengthening. This verb + particle pattern is common and predictable, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents is likely to infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Build up comes from turning empty land into buildings: you build on the ground and fill it up with houses, roads and shops. So it means 'to develop land'.