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Glite Dictionary
to cowboy up

to cowboy up

4 9.9
Face a hard situation bravely and take responsibility
  • phrasal verb
  • /ˈkaʊbɔɪ ʌp/
  • Informal
: ponerse las pilas
  • He knew he had to cowboy up and take responsibility for his actions despite the difficulties ahead.
  • cowboy up and get

Examples

Synonyms

to man up
vsto cowboy up
  • Informal
36 7.9

To act brave and take responsibility when things are hard

asks for courage especially when pushed to accept blame or duty
to buck up
vsto cowboy up
  • Informal
14 6.3

To become or make someone more cheerful and confident

demands facing hardship with tough resolve rather than mere encouragement
to saddle up
vsto cowboy up
  • Informal
8 5.2

Get ready mentally and physically for a long trip or hard task

is about showing courage and taking on responsibility when challenged
to bear up
vsto cowboy up
5 4.4

To stay strong and positive when facing hard times

calls instead for active facing of the problem and taking responsibility
to eagle up
vsto cowboy up
  • Informal
9.9

To face a difficult task bravely and try your best

adds the idea of being urged to toughen up and take responsibility
to muscle up
vsto cowboy up
  • Informal
8.1

Gather the courage to face a hard task

focuses more on immediate courage and accepting responsibility under pressure
to huckle up
vsto cowboy up
  • Informal
9.9

Get ready to act with energy and strong focus

emphasizes instead facing difficulty with courage and accepting responsibility

Antonyms

to give up
∞ 1.2

To stop trying to do something or accept defeat

How Brave

to toughen up
  • Informal
17 4.2
to cowboy up
  • Informal
4 9.9
to face up
  • Informal
38 4.1
to back down
107 3.7

Surface Forms

cowboy up infinitive
cowboyed up past
cowboyed up past participle
cowboying up present participle
cowboys up third person singular

Morphology

cowboy + up

The phrase builds on the cultural stereotype of a 'cowboy' as tough combined with 'up' signalling assuming or increasing a quality, so a learner who knows the words might infer a sense like 'toughen up' but only if they know that cultural association. The meaning is a metaphorical extension rather than a straightforward compositional meaning, so it is partially predictable but requires extra pragmatic/cultural knowledge.

Etymology

Cowboy up may come from rodeo and ranch life. One popular story says that after a fall a cowboy had to climb back up onto his horse and keep working, so the phrase means 'be brave and face a hard situation'.