to soak up
16
3.9
- phrasal verb
- /soʊk ʌp/
- Informal
:
empaparse de
- As she listened to the lecture, she tried to soak up as much information as she could.
- soak up the atmosphere
- soak up the culture
- soak up the scenery
But even beyond attachment, we did soak up their energy.
- But even beyond attachment, we did soak up their energy.
- In other words, sleep almost prepares your brain like a dry sponge ready to initially soak up those new pieces of information.
- So the way that a director would try to soak up a location, same thing with trying to soak up various sort of composites of people.
- and they're just soaking up all the stuff that's going on that's dominating the media right now.
- So I just used to sit by the grave and just try to soak up some of that vibe, that energy.
- Did you ever immerse yourself in, let's say, you know, a bar in a bad part of town and just to kind of soak up the feeling?
- These guys soak up and take every oz, every bit of information and science that's available and utilise it.
Examples
-
While we are here, I am going to soak up as much of the culture that I can.
Blog text (15) -
We each act like sponges, soaking up what goes on around us.
Blog text (6) -
So maybe I should take my time and soak it up and maybe life is just as good as who you spend it with.
-
I want to soak up every last second.
-
I could drop in and soak up a little knowledge.
-
You know, I like to soak up the atmosphere.
-
There is no mistaking a child on the edge of her seat, soaking up everything she can.
Blog text (15) -
- No way man, I'm trying to soak up the Mexican culture while I'm in L.A..
-
For us actors it was great, because we could just soak up the local culture and try our best to replicate it.
-
As he's going for his fifth championship, he's finding the time to soak up everything around him.
Synonyms
256
3.0
Get information or lessons from a source
217
3.0
To take in things such as liquid, light, or information
59
4.8
Make someone fully involved in an activity or interest
59
4.1
To slowly understand and accept something
37
3.2
Understand new information or ideas
28
4.2
To become fully involved in an activity or subject
27
5.8
To give yourself fully to a subject or activity
22
5.1
To become so focused on something that you do not notice anything else
22
4.3
To take in liquid or information
17
5.8
To hold someone's full attention
9
7.4
Drink alcohol or absorb ideas and knowledge
7
5.1
To look at or listen to something with full attention and enjoy it
7
3.2
To soak up liquid or learn and keep new information
7
3.6
To take in and hold something, like a sponge taking water
6
5.0
To put something completely under water or to become very involved in an activity
1
4.0
To take in new information quickly and easily
To take in liquid or things like information and feelings
Antonyms
How Absorbed
- US
37
6.7
- Informal
16
3.9
∞
1.0
37
3.2
∞
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The verb 'soak' has a literal sense of absorbing liquid and 'up' adds a sense of completeness, and these senses map metaphorically onto absorbing information or atmosphere. Because the meaning is a figurative extension of the literal constituents rather than a direct composition, a B1 learner who knows the words may partly infer the sense but not fully predict all uses without prior exposure.
Etymology
The phrasal verb soak up uses the picture of a sponge: soak means to take in and up shows the action is complete. So, when you 'soak up' advice or the mood of a place, you take it in fully, which is why it means 'to take in information, experience, or atmosphere completely'.