to pile up

Examples

• All

• Dishes pile up in the sink.

  Proof (2005)

• I mean, things must've piled up on you yesterday.

  The Vampire (1957)

• The work is starting to pile up.

  Rule of Three (2008)

• We're gonna pile up the food, and we'll let you know the rules later.

  Blindness (2008)

• So let's pile these up here and we're ready to go.

• The older you get, those troubles just keep piling up.

  On the Road (2012)

• To the left, construction materials are piled up deep in the shadows.

  Academic text (2007)

• They're piling up outside the door.

  JFK (1991)

• In some areas, they were so abundant that they piled up on top of one another.

  Academic text (1992)

• The bills pile up, utilities are cut off, debts are incurred.

  Harvard University

Synonyms

C

to collect

vsto pile up

768 1.1

To bring things or people together in one place

typically involves physically arranging those things into a pile

P

to pile

vsto pile up

230 1.2

To put things in a heap or stack

is identical in meaning but uses a two word phrasal form

A

to accumulate

vsto pile up

168 3.4

To gather more and more of something over time

can mean that or physical piling into a visible heap

A

to amass

vsto pile up

65 4.8

To collect a lot of something over time

can mean the same amount but specifically arranged into a pile

G

to gather up

vsto pile up

61 2.1

Bring things together by picking them up with your hands

is about forming a pile or a large accumulated heap

G

to gather

vsto pile up

45 1.8

Increase slowly over time

emphasizes arranging into a visible pile or heap

H

to hoard

vsto pile up

38 4.8

To collect and keep large amounts of food or other things for future use

may simply mean piling items together without secretive storage intent

S

to stack up

vsto pile up

31 3.2

Put things in a neat pile, one on top of another

focuses more on making a loose pile rather than a neat stack

A

to aggregate

vsto pile up

18 5.1

To collect things together to make one total

often instead describes a visible heap or accumulated mass

H

to heap

vsto pile up

15 2.4

To put things into a pile

is identical in meaning but appears as a two word phrasal form

R

to roll up

vsto pile up

11 3.7

Collect small amounts until they become a larger total

is more about arranging the collected items into a visible pile

H

to heap up

vsto pile up

2 2.5

Put things into a pile

is identical in meaning but appears as a two word phrasal form

C

to cumulate

vsto pile up

1 7.9

To increase in amount over time

adds the idea of physical piling or visible heap formation

Antonyms

D

to disperse

81 4.4

To cause people and things, like a crowd or fog, to spread over a wide area

How Much

to accumulate

168 3.4

to pile up

107 3.1

to collect

768 1.1

to gather

∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology