shoot-up
noun
an act or instance of injecting an addictive drug intravenously.
shoot-up
American
[shoot-uhp]
/ ˈʃutˌʌp /
shoot up
British
verb
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(intr) to grow or become taller very fast
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(tr) to hit with a number of shots
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(tr) to spread terror throughout (a place) by lawless and wanton shooting
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slang (tr) to inject (someone, esp oneself) with (a drug, esp heroin)
shoot up
Idioms
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Grow or get taller very rapidly, as in She's really shot up in the last year, and now she's taller than her mother . [First half of 1500s]
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Riddle with bullets; damage or terrorize with gunfire. For example, I liked the scene in which the cowboy stomps into the saloon, gets drunk, and shoots the place up . [Late 1800s]
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Inject a drug intravenously, especially an illegal drug. For example, The police caught him shooting up and arrested him . [ Slang ; first half of 1900s]
Etymology
Origin of shoot-up
First recorded in 1965–70; noun use of verb phrase shoot up
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It says some of its members could even find themselves making a loss on diesel, which has seen its price shoot up particularly sharply.
From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026
Investors also fear AI stocks could shoot up in price, crippling any short bets.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 25, 2026
Expenses that shoot up due to rising prices or increased personal usage “can be a real hit to savings,” she said.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 19, 2026
But starting in 2024, prices of existing homes started to shoot up and the gap closed.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 13, 2026
The class gazed dreamily at the bank, half-expecting it to shoot up to the ceiling in a puff of smoke.
From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
