to crank up the volume - Glite Dictionary

Examples

Then tune all your radios to the baddest street garage station and crank up the volume to the max.

Ali G Indahouse (2002)
AJ cranked up the volume at his end to be sure he'd be heard.

Fiction book (2002)
"Oliver cranked up the volume."

Fiction book (1995)
He cranks up the volume on the tape deck.

Fiction book (1990)
As someone cranks up the volume, pan around the faces in the room who listen in rapt attention.

Fiction book (2000)
She turns the boombox on and cranks up the volume.

Fiction book (1998)
Crank up the volume.

Marlowe (2023)
To hear my favorite song clearly, I always crank up the volume on my speakers.
When the movie began, I quickly cranked up the volume so that I wouldn't miss any dialogue.

Synonyms

to ramp up

vsto crank up the volume

47 4.1

To increase something, especially its amount or speed

refers instead to the quick manual action of raising a sound control

to bump up

vsto crank up the volume

23 3.4

To raise prices or amounts by a lot

restricts this to the manual raising of sound level on a device

to amplify

vsto crank up the volume

Specialized

23 3.7

To make a sound or electronic signal louder using equipment

focuses on simple user control rather than technical electronic amplification

to turn up the volume

vsto crank up the volume

10 2.0

Make the sound from a radio, TV, or speaker louder

is specifically done by turning a knob or pressing a button

to jack up the volume

vsto crank up the volume

Informal

4.8

Turn a control to make music louder

is the neutral manual action of adjusting a control to raise sound

to bump up the volume

vsto crank up the volume

3.4

Make the sound louder by turning the volume control

is the same action but emphasizes using a knob or switch physically

to louden

vsto crank up the volume

7.5

To become louder or make a sound louder

is specifically about increasing sound by using a device control

to volumize

vsto crank up the volume

Specialized

5.8

To make recorded sound louder

is the basic manual increase of playback loudness on a device

Antonyms

to turn down

191 2.7

Make the sound or heat from something lower, for example music

How Loud

to boom out

1 5.7

to crank up the volume

Informal

1 3.4

to bump up the volume

3.4

to turn up the volume

10 2.0

Surface Forms

crank up the volume infinitive

cranked up the volume past

cranked up the volume past participle

cranking up the volume present participle

cranks up the volume third person singular

Morphology

crank + up + the + volume

The meaning 'to increase the sound level' is directly derivable from the constituents: 'crank' (turn/operate, often to increase), 'up' (raise/increase) and 'volume' (loudness). This verb+particle+noun pattern transparently signals raising the loudness and is a common compositional construction that a B1 learner who knows the parts can infer.

Etymology

Crank up the volume comes from the old image of turning a hand crank or a knob on a radio to make the volume go up, so it now means 'to make the sound louder'.