strike up

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verb (adverb)

(of a band, orchestra, etc) to begin to play or sing

(tr) to bring about; cause to beginto strike up a friendship

(tr) to emboss (patterns, etc) on (metal)

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Words nearby strike up

striker, strike slip, strike-slip fault, strike the right note, strike through, strike up, Strike while the iron is hot, strike zone, striking, striking circle, strikingly

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 strike up in a sentence

If you respond, he begins to strike up a conversation through its private message function.
Iran Is Using a Neocon to Hack Its Foes|Eli Lake|May 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Just before heading out into the Hollywood night, I strike up a conversation with New Zealand actress Rena Owen.
Backstage at the Razzie Awards, Honoring Hollywood’s Worst Films|David Eckstein|March 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When among Israelis, I find myself trying to strike up spontaneous singalongs of old Israeli ditties.
Why Israelis Abroad Should Branch Out|Mira Sucharov|June 28, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He would "strike up a conversation with anyone and relate to them," Henkel said.
The Wasilla Army Killer's Dark Past|Shushannah Walshe|March 23, 2011|DAILY BEAST

The two immediately strike up a friendship, with the old spinster writing in her diary that Sheba “may be the one.”
11 Creepy Movie Stalkers!|Marlow Stern|February 3, 2011|DAILY BEAST
On this the royal band of music would strike up its liveliest airs, and a great bell would toll its evening warning.
Our Little Korean Cousin|H. Lee M. Pike
What really brought our party into this country, though, was a report of a rich strike up above.
Gold-Seeking on the Dalton Trail|Arthur R. Thompson
But it was one thing to strike up an acquaintanceship in Liverpool, and quite another to continue that acquaintanceship elsewhere.
Mushroom Town|Oliver Onions
One went to a spinet which stood at the end of the room, and another brought in a violin and began to strike up a dancing air.
Hurricane Hurry|W.H.G. Kingston
In that case he had only to strike up a few airs and it was all up with the poor Colus.
The Strand Magazine, Volume XXVII, January 1904, No. 157|Various