chalk up

British  

verb

1. to score or register (something)

   we chalked up 100 in the game

2. to credit (money) to an account etc (esp in the phrase chalk it up )

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chalk up Idioms  

1. Score or earn, as in She chalked up enough points to be seeded first in the tournament . This term alludes to recording accounts (and later, scores) in chalk on a slate. [c. 1700]

2. Credit or ascribe, as They chalked their success up to experience . [First half of 1900s]

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Example Sentences

If he weren’t a trauma doctor, you might chalk up the missing headgear to romantic imagery and an homage to “Then Came Bronson.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 6, 2026

Let’s chalk up your girlfriend’s comments to momentary bad judgment.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 17, 2025

The Basque goalkeeper got a hand to the ball and should have kept it out, but Lewandowski was able to chalk up his eighth league goal of his injury-hit, stop-start season.

From Barron's • Nov. 22, 2025

But you can chalk up their momentary fellowship to America’s copyright laws, under which both are entering the public domain on Jan. 1.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 26, 2023

“I love this guy. Come on, new friend. Let’s go chalk up my thirteenth defeat in a row!”

From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan