gear up

verb

geared up; gearing up; gears up
Synonyms of gear upnext

intransitive verb

: to get ready
are gearing up for the big game

Examples of gear up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Now, more than half a century later, our species is gearing up to go back — but this time, in a much different way. — Mike Wall, Space.com, 4 July 2026 The county is now gearing up to take the land using eminent domain, a process that allows a government to buy land without the owner’s consent. — Catherine Odom, Miami Herald, 1 July 2026 Rose recorded an album — a live album, naturally — in 2025 and is gearing up to release it later this year. — Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 2 July 2026 As Americans gear up for a remarkably hot Fourth of July weekend, party fare is certainly on the mind. — Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 4 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for gear up

Word History

First Known Use

1943, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of gear up was in 1943

Rhymes for gear up

See All Rhymes for gear up

Browse Nearby Words

gearshift
gear up
gearwheel
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Gear up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gear%20up. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on gear up

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for gear up

Nglish: Translation of gear up for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gambol

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
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
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All