bumping (up)

verb

present participle of bump (up)
as in ratcheting (up)

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bumping (up)
  1. building up
  2. pumping up
  3. maximizing
  4. increasing
Verb
  • China is building up its military and AI capabilities despite limited access to advanced computer chips.
    — Josh Boak, Fortune, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Boone said the final few steps for Judge’s return include building up his workload because he has been sidelined for over three months with a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side.
    — Chris Kirschner, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of building up
Verb
  • When showing a complex picture with many different hues next to each other, though, pumping up the output of individual LED colors can cause the edges of those hues to tint and warp.
    — Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Several stock indexes, including the NASDAQ 100, also relaxed rules for how soon new issues could be included, further pumping up demand.
    — John Ruwitch, NPR, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of pumping up
Verb
  • That is a reward-maximizing system doing exactly what the reward function told it to do in a scenario designed to elicit the outcome.
    — Stephen Messer, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026
  • That idea became known as MSV, or maximizing shareholder value.
    — John E. McDonough, STAT, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of maximizing
Verb
  • This increasing self-reliance has an extra benefit in the midst of a grueling war.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Despite this, national reports indicate continued use of performance- and appearance-enhancing drugs, and increasing interest in them.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of increasing
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

bumping off
bumping (up)
bump into
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bumping (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bumping%20%28up%29. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of compunction

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All