step-up
adjective
effecting an increase.
step-up
American
[step-uhp]
/ ˈstɛpˌʌp /
Or
stepup
adjective
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effecting an increase.
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Electricity. serving to increase voltage.
a step-up transformer.
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(of a lease) allowing for gradual rent increases to the highest amount permissible.
noun
-
step-ups
plural
step up
British
verb
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(tr) to increase or raise by stages; accelerate
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(intr) to make progress or effect an advancement; be promoted
-
-
baseball to move into batting position
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to come forward and take responsibility for something
-
adjective
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(of a transformer) increasing a low voltage applied to the primary winding to a higher voltage on the secondary winding Compare step down
-
informal involving a rise by stages
noun
step up
Idioms
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Increase, especially in stages, as in We've got to step up production . [Early 1900s] Also see step down , def. 2.
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Come forward, as in Step up to the podium, folks, and I'll show you how it works . [Mid-1600s]
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of step-up
First recorded in 1890–95; adj., noun use of verb phrase step 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.
See Examples For:
That is already a steep enough path that some investors believe that a further step-up in rate expectations could at least contain the selloff in longer-term bonds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
There's plenty of scope for Indian farmers to step-up production.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
The step-up in cost basis can be extremely valuable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
The fact that your mother gave you the property doesn’t, in itself, prevent you from transferring it back to her and receiving a step-up in basis when she dies.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
It usually happens, however, that two stereo-isomers result from the "step-up" by way of the nitrile reaction; thus, arabinose yields a mixture of glucose and mannose, glucose yields glucoheptose and mannoheptose, etc.
From The Chemistry of Plant Life by Roscoe Wilfred Thatcher
“We’ve got to step up and keep fighting.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026
I saw him play there as Spurs captain recently and he has the quality, temperament and leadership qualities to step up to senior international level.
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, because it sought to answer that question in favor of consumers, and showed that states like California can and will step up to fill a dangerous void.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026
Amazon has its own AI shopping agents, and other brands may try to step up their own agentic efforts through bots that leverage data and offer customers exclusive deals, Wlodarczak noted.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026
“How cool is it gonna look when you step up to the line for your million dollar shot and you chuck a brick?”
From "The Million Dollar Shot" by Dan Gutman
The signs point to several short-term factors coming together all at once — trade logjams, a surge in post-pandemic demand for goods, limited step-ups in oil production, labor demands for a living wage.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 26, 2021
To make it equal to the in-person event, climb 1,197 stairs, do 600 step-ups, walk 3.75 miles, swim 1,200 meters, run 2 miles or cycle 20 miles.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 10, 2021
To increase the intensity, he suggests performing lunges or step-ups with weights or a backpack.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 26, 2021
Circuits might include running up stairs with weights on her back, box jumps, push-ups, pull-ups, dead lifts and step-ups.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 9, 2016
Clean and snatch was out of the question because of my back and squats because of my knee, so I got the pleasure of doing step-ups.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 26, 2014
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.
