perk up


verb(adverb)
  1. to make or become more cheerful, hopeful, or lively

  2. to rise or cause to rise briskly: the dog's ears perked up

  1. (tr) to make smarter in appearance: she perked up her outfit with a bright scarf

  2. (intr) Australian slang to vomit

Origin of perk up

1
C14 perk, perhaps from Norman French perquer; see perch 1

Words Nearby perk up

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

How to use perk up in a sentence

Other Idioms and Phrases with perk up

perk up

Restore to good spirits, liveliness, or good appearance, as in You're exhausted, but a cup of tea will perk you up, or The flowers perked up the whole room. [Mid-1600s]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.