Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to round up

to round up

169 3.2
To bring people, animals, or things together in one place
  • phrasal verb
  • /raʊnd ʌp/
translation icon : reunir
  • The farmer worked all day to round up his cattle before the storm hit.
  • round up people
  • round up cattle
  • round up and deport

But the immediate promise of Donald Trump's to start rounding people up is horrifying.

Autoplay Next

Examples

Synonyms

to gather
vsto round up
∞ 1.0

Bring people, things, or information together in one place

has the same bringing together meaning and applies similarly in many contexts
to collect
vsto round up
499 1.1

To bring things or people together in one place

focuses on bringing together in one place without implying physical pickup
to assemble
vsto round up
152 3.3

To gather people in one place for a purpose

is more general and does not require a specific purpose for the action
to get together
vsto round up
  • Informal
118 2.8

To bring people together for a meeting or activity

is broader, applying to any bringing into one place beyond social meetings
to muster
vsto round up
84 5.4

To gather people, supplies, or courage for a purpose

is broader, not necessarily implying mobilization or preparation for action
to gather up
vsto round up
43 2.1

Bring things together by picking them up with your hands

is wider in use, covering people or animals as well as items
to bunch
vsto round up
30 1.2

To gather things or people into a group

is the general action of bringing into one place without tight clustering
to corral
vsto round up
12 5.2

To gather and put animals or people into a pen to keep them together

is similar but does not require enclosing or containing the group
to bunch up
vsto round up
8 3.3

To gather closely into a tight group

is more general and does not necessarily imply a very tight cluster
to bunch together
vsto round up
5 3.1

To move or bring close together to form a small group

is similar but covers bringing into one place without compactness

Antonyms

to scatter
110 2.7

To make people or animals move quickly in different directions

How Gathered

to corral
12 5.2
to round up
169 3.2
to muster
84 5.4
to gather
∞ 1.0
to collect
499 1.1

Surface Forms

round up infinitive
rounded up past
rounded up past participle
rounding up present participle
rounds up third person singular

Morphology

round + up

The sense 'to gather or collect' is partially linked to the constituents: 'round' can imply movement around or bringing things together and 'up' adds a sense of completion or aggregation. However, the specific conventionalized sense of rounding people/animals up is an extended, somewhat metaphorical use that a B1 learner who only knows the literal constituents would not fully predict without exposure.

Etymology

The phrasal verb round up comes from farm life, where people would move in a circle, which is round, to push animals into a pen or group, which is up. That's why round up means 'to gather or collect'.