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Glite Dictionary
to chat up

to chat up

4 7.8
Talk to someone in a friendly way to try to start a romantic relationship
  • phrasal verb
  • /tʃæt ʌp/
  • NSFW
translation icon : ligar
  • She was nervous but decided to chat up the guy sitting next to her at the bar.
  • chatting up a girl
  • chatting up a guy
  • chatting up a customer

It's all these like men from like weird countries that are like trying to chat me up.

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Examples

  • You could walk up to them at SolidWorks World and chat them up like it was a barbecue.

    Blog text (19)

  • We found him sitting at the bar, chatting up another pretty young girl.

    Snatched (2017)

  • You should have thought about that before - you started chatting up my bird.

    The Heavy (2010)

  • It feels personal when you chat up every other guy at the game except me.

    Molly's Game (2017)

  • For instance, last year I was in a club in Cali and started chatting up this huge, silent biker bouncer.

    Blog text (21)

  • It was at Vicky's afternoon language class, which she took several days a week to improve her Spanish, that she met Ben, a young man who couldn't stop noticing her and started to chat her up each day.

    Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)

  • You're at a luncheon, chatting up potential future business partners. You hand them a little slab of cardstock with your name, vital statistics, and contact info emblazoned across the front, and bam, you look professional as hell.

    Blog text (23)

  • At the party, he tried to chat up a girl he found attractive by complimenting her dress.

  • It's common for guys to chat up women at nightclubs to make new romantic connections.

Synonyms

to flirt
vsto chat up
267 3.1

Behave playfully or tease someone to show romantic interest

is more targeted toward attracting someone rather than casual playful signals
to hit on
vsto chat up
  • NSFW
154 7.8

Try to show romantic or sexual interest in someone by making advances

is more about friendly talk aiming to attract rather than direct advances
to pick up
vsto chat up
  • NSFW
126 8.2

To meet someone to start a romantic or sexual relationship

is mainly about talking to attract rather than arranging a meeting
to romance
vsto chat up
16 5.3

To try to attract someone you like, often with gifts or kind words

is more often a sustained courting effort rather than brief flirtatious talk
to mash
vsto chat up
  • UK
8 9.9

To flirt with someone without wanting a serious relationship

is the neutral phrasing used widely rather than informal slang
to chat someone up
vsto chat up
  • NSFW
3 6.9

Talk to someone in a friendly, flirty way to start a romantic relationship

is the shorter phrasing without an explicit object
to dally
vsto chat up
1 8.2

To behave in a playful romantic way without serious interest

is used for direct talk to attract rather than prolonged playful delay
to coquette
vsto chat up
9.3

Behave in a playful, flirty way to get attention

is used when someone aims to attract rather than merely play
to coquet
vsto chat up
9.9

To act in a flirty way without serious interest

is focused on active attempts to attract rather than playful behaviour

Antonyms

to dismiss
332 3.0

To refuse to accept an idea or claim

to snub
7 6.3

To ignore someone on purpose to show disrespect

How Flirtatious

to hit on
  • NSFW
154 7.8
to chat up
  • NSFW
4 7.8
to flirt
267 3.1

Surface Forms

chat up infinitive
chatted up past
chatted up past participle
chatting up present participle
chats up third person singular

Morphology

chat + up

While 'chat' clearly contributes the sense of informal talking, the particle 'up' does not transparently signal the flirtatious or romantic intent; the specific meaning 'to try to attract someone' is a pragmatic/idiomatic extension not directly derivable from the parts. This fits the common pattern of phrasal verbs where the particle adds a non-literal interpersonal nuance, so a B1 learner knowing the words would only partially infer the meaning and would likely need exposure to learn the flirtatious sense.

Etymology

Chat up may come from the simple picture of someone stepping closer and starting a friendly chat, with the up showing the talk is moving things forward. So, chat up means 'to talk to someone to try to attract or flirt with them'.