bucking up

verb

present participle of buck up
1
as in looking up
to become glad or hopeful buck up, kids, it's not so bad as you're making it out to be

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in inspiring
to fill with courage or strength of purpose a surprise presidential visit to buck up the troops

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bucking up
  1. looking up
  2. inspiring
  3. brightening
  4. encouraging
  5. bearing up
Verb
  • Oestlien was recently looking up at the roof of the office building where that receiver once stood.
    — Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Things were looking up for the Cardinals entering the 2026 season.
    — PJ Green August 30, Kansas City Star, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of looking up
Verb
  • Simply buy your ticket, sit back, and enjoy Mother Nature’s awe-inspiring spectacle.
    — Jessica Puckett, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Sep. 2026
  • The company also raised its full-year guidance, inspiring confidence in its stock.
    — Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of inspiring
Verb
  • The fragrance-free formula contains hyaluronic acid and niacinamide, which are the best lightweight, skin-brightening humectants for hydrating parched skin.
    — Irene Richardson, InStyle, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The narrow harvest window and vitamin C plus niacinamide combination are what set it apart from other brightening serums on shelves.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Sacbee.com, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of brightening
Verb
  • When the east Texas oilfield was discovered in the interwar years, gasoline prices fell sharply, incentivizing bigger engines and vehicles, while encouraging longer journeys.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2026
  • By taking stem cells from a host’s own body and encouraging them to differentiate before mixing them with a commercially available, soluble matrix gel, researchers may have cracked the most critical problems in the transplant process.
    — Mike McRae September 02, New Atlas, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of encouraging
Verb
  • It can also be used as a bench, bearing up to 355 pounds.
    — Caitlyn Martyn may earn a commission if you buy through our referral links. This content was created by a team that works independently from the Fox newsroom., FOXNews.com, 11 Aug. 2025
Definition of bearing up
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

bucking
bucking up
buckle
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Cite this Entry

“Bucking up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bucking%20up. Accessed 6 Sep. 2026.

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