Phrase guide

add up

verb · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

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Pronunciation

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1

verb

Meaning 1

To take the sum of; to total.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • Add up the prices and find out how much it will cost.
  • When they added up the vaccine doses from all known and anticipate sources, they didn't have enough.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: sum up, tally

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To accumulate; to amount to.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Examples

  • If you can save even a couple of dollars per day, it will add up to a lot over a year.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: accrue, mount up

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To make sense; to be reasonable or consistent.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic, intransitive

Examples

  • His story just doesn't add up. Why would he have been at the restaurant the day before the event?

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: compute, hang together, check out, make sense, track, figure

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

determine the sum of

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • Add all the people in this town to those of the neighboring town

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: total, tot, tot up, sum, sum up, summate, tote up, add, add together, tally

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: count, number, enumerate, numerate

5

verb

Meaning 5

be reasonable or logical or comprehensible

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: make sense

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: be

6

verb

Meaning 6

develop into

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • This idea will never amount to anything
  • nothing came of his grandiose plans

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: come, amount

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: become, turn

Narrower terms: aggregate

7

verb

Meaning 7

add up in number or quantity

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • The bills amounted to $2,000
  • The bill came to $2,000

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: total, number, come, amount

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: be

Narrower terms: work out, outnumber, average, average out, make

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

20 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Finnish: laskea yhteen — to take a sum
  • French: additionner — to take a sum
  • Polish: dodawać — to take a sum
  • Polish: dodać — to take a sum
  • Polish: sumować — to take a sum
  • Polish: zsumowywać — to take a sum
  • Polish: zsumować — to take a sum
  • Polish: podliczać — to take a sum
  • Polish: podliczyć — to take a sum
  • Spanish: adicionar — to take a sum
  • French: faire — to amount to
  • Italian: sommarsi — to amount to
  • Polish: sumować się — to amount to
  • Polish: wynosić — to amount to
  • Polish: wynieść — to amount to
  • Turkish: birikmek — to amount to
  • Polish: kleić się — to be reasonable or consistent; to make sense
  • Polish: trzymać się kupy — to be reasonable or consistent; to make sense
  • Polish: zgadzać się — to be reasonable or consistent; to make sense
  • Polish: mieć sens — to be reasonable or consistent; to make sense