Skip to main content
to bump up the budget

to bump up the budget

3.9
To increase the money available for a project or plan
  • phrasal verb
: aumentar el presupuesto
  • Due to unexpected expenses, we had to bump up the budget halfway through the project.

Examples

  • She asked the finance team if they could bump up the budget for marketing this quarter.

  • After reviewing the initial estimates, the committee decided to bump up the budget for the event.

  • Let's bump up the budget!

  • We need to bump up the budget for the new project!

  • After reviewing the initial estimates, the committee decided to bump up the budget for the event.

  • Due to unexpected expenses, we had to bump up the budget halfway through the project.

  • She asked the finance team if they could bump up the budget for marketing this quarter.

Synonyms

to raise
vsto bump up the budget
∞ 2.9

To make an amount, level, or value higher

is specifically about increasing money allocated for a project
to ramp up
vsto bump up the budget
47 4.1

To increase something, especially its amount or speed

is about increasing money allocated for a project rather than speed or intensity
to beef up
vsto bump up the budget
  • Informal
34 4.5

To make something stronger or more effective

is about increasing money allocated rather than strengthening or improving things
to jack up
vsto bump up the budget
  • Informal
12 5.9

To raise prices or rent suddenly by a lot

is about increasing project money, not necessarily by a large sudden amount
to hike up
vsto bump up the budget
3 4.8

Raise prices or fees suddenly by a large amount

is about increasing money allocated without implying suddenness

Antonyms

57 2.8

Less money given to a department or service in a budget

To cut spending by removing unnecessary costs from a budget

Surface Forms

bump up the budget infinitive
bumped up the budget past participle
bumping up the budget present participle
bumps up the budget third person singular

Morphology

bump + up + the + budget

The phrase 'bump up' is a transparent verb+particle combination where 'up' conveys increasing and 'bump' here metaphorically means to raise slightly; combined with 'budget' the overall meaning 'increase the budget' follows directly from the constituents. This compositional, commonly used pattern is cross-linguistically intuitive, so a B1 learner who knows the words would very likely infer the meaning.

Etymology

Bump up the budget comes from the simple image of bump up as a small push that moves something higher, like nudging a number on a list, and budget meaning the plan for money. So it means 'to increase the amount of money' for a project.