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Glite Dictionary
to plump up

to plump up

1 4.5
To make a pillow or cushion fuller by fluffing it
  • phrasal verb
  • /plʌmp ʌp/
translation icon : inflar
  • Use whatever favorite mascara you love and just plump up those lashes.
  • plump up the pillows
  • plump up the cushions
  • plump up the skin

This actually works the muscles, it plumps up above the lip, it plumps up.

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Examples

  • What this is going to do, it's going to plump up and hydrate the skin.

    Tati

  • It'll really help to hydrate and plump up your skin and lips.

  • We're going to just plump up each breast the way she wants it.

  • May decided that this was the moment to plump up the pillows.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • At bedtime, she plumped up some pillows along his side of the bed and threw her left leg across the bottom pillow.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • She's attending to him, pulling back the sheets, plumping up the pillows.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • She plumped up the pillow she was leaning against and slipped it behind her again, placing her hands neatly in her lap.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • She scrapes corn off last night's ears into the bowl, then spoons the batter into the fat and listens to it hiss as it plumps up, watching it rise as it fries.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • Julia plumped up the pillows next to her on the glider, fingered the vials in her pocket, and moved calmly out of the gazebo toward her, across the worn path in the grass.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • After washing the cushion, I always fluff and plump up the pillows before putting them back on the couch.

Synonyms

to puff
vsto plump up
20 4.1

To swell or make part of the body larger

achieves enlargement externally by shaking, fluffing, or patting instead of internal filling
to fluff
vsto plump up
17 4.1

To make hair or fabric look fuller by brushing

achieves fullness through shaking, fluffing, or patting rather than styling alone
to shake up
vsto plump up
10 3.5

To move something quickly so it becomes fluffier or looser

adds patting and gentle shaping as extra methods to reach fullness
to plump
vsto plump up
5 3.8

To make someone or something fuller and rounder

makes fullness by shaking, fluffing, or patting rather than by feeding
to puff out
vsto plump up
5 3.5

To make something larger by filling with air or pride

produces roundness through manual shaking and patting rather than inflation or emotion
to fluff the pillow
vsto plump up
3 2.8

To make a pillow fuller and softer by shaking and patting it

is about making fullness in many items, not only pillows
to fluff up
vsto plump up
2 3.3

To make something fuller and softer by shaking or separating it

uses shaking or patting to make fullness rather than just separating fibres
to pouf
vsto plump up
2 8.1

To make hair or cloth look rounded and full

focuses on creating actual fullness by shaking, fluffing, or patting
to puff up
vsto plump up
2 4.4

To make something larger or more full, for example by filling it with air

creates fullness by physical fluffing or patting rather than by inflation
to plump out
vsto plump up
  • UK
6.1

To make someone or something rounder and fuller

creates roundness specifically by shaking, fluffing, or patting rather than growth
to pluff
vsto plump up
9.9

To make a pillow or cushion soft and fluffy by patting it

applies the same manual actions to create fuller or rounder shapes
to round out
vsto plump up
4.5

Make something smooth by removing sharp edges

specifies manual shaking, fluffing, or patting as the method to round it

Antonyms

to flatten
23 2.6

Make something flat and smooth by pressing it

to deflate
18 3.1

To let air out of something so it becomes smaller or loses its shape

How Full

to stuff
243 2.0
to plump up
1 4.5
to fluff up
2 3.3

Surface Forms

plump up infinitive
plumped up past
plumped up past participle
plumping up present participle
plumps up third person singular

Morphology

plump + up

The verb 'plump' (to make rounder or fluff) combined with the particle 'up' (indicating increase or intensification) directly yields the meaning 'make fuller or rounder'; a B1 learner who knows both constituents can derive this sense. This follows a common English verb + up compositional pattern that is cross-linguistically accessible, making the expression immediately comprehensible.

Etymology

Plump up comes from the simple action of patting or shaking a pillow or cushion so it becomes full and round; the verb plump means to make soft and round and up shows it gets fuller. So, to plump up something today means 'to make it fuller or rounder'.