go up

British  

verb

1. (also preposition) to move or lead to or as if to a higher place or level; rise; increase

   prices are always going up

   the curtain goes up at eight o'clock

   new buildings are going up all around us

2. to be destroyed

   the house went up in flames

3. to go or return (to college or university) at the beginning of a term or academic year

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go up Idioms  

1. Be put up, as in New buildings are going up all over town .

2. Rise; increase. For example, His temperature is going up at an alarming rate , or The costs of construction are going up all the time . [Late 1800s]

3. Also, be gone up . Be destroyed, ruined, done for; also, die, be killed. For example, If we're not back in a week, you'll know we've gone up , or In spite of our efforts, the plans for a new library are gone up . [ Slang ; mid-1800s]

4. Forget one's lines on the stage or make a mistake in performing music. For example, Don't worry, you know your part and you won't go up , or He went up in the last movement of the sonata . [ Slang ; 1960s] Also see the subsequent idioms beginning with go up .

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Example Sentences

Because his bee boxes — the structures used to house his colonies — all burned, Teller’s costs will go up.

From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026

“There is a lot of indication that costs will go up, jobs will get cut or wages will go down,” he added.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 26, 2026

"In regions like Maharashtra, temperatures can go up to 40 degrees, and even during transit it can reach 30–35 degrees, which is not ideal for this fruit."

From BBC • May 25, 2026

“We’ve seen storage drives and graphics cards go up in price.”

From MarketWatch • May 23, 2026

We’d go up to kick the football and they’d pull it back.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Related Words

• accelerate
• advance
• ascend
• build
• climb
• double
• expand
• improve
• lift
• move up
• multiply
• pick up
• raise
• soar
• swell