- speed up
- verb1. move faster (Freq. 3)-
The car accelerated
• Syn: ↑accelerate, ↑speed, ↑quicken• Ant: ↑decelerate (for: ↑accelerate)• Derivationally related forms: ↑quickening (for: ↑quicken), ↑speed (for: ↑speed), ↑speedup, ↑acceleratory (for: ↑accelerate), ↑accelerative (for: ↑accelerate)• Verb Frames:-Something ——s
-Somebody ——s
-Somebody ——s something
-Something ——s something
-These cars won't speed up
2. cause to move faster-He accelerated the car
• Syn: ↑accelerate, ↑speed• Ant: ↑decelerate (for: ↑accelerate)• Derivationally related forms: ↑speedup, ↑speed (for: ↑speed), ↑acceleratory (for: ↑accelerate), ↑accelerative (for: ↑accelerate), ↑acceleration (for: ↑accelerate), ↑accelerator (for: ↑accelerate)• Verb Frames:-Somebody ——s something
-Somebody ——s somebody
-Something ——s somebody
-Something ——s something
* * *
speed up [phrasal verb]speed up or speed up (something or someone) or speed (something or someone) up : to become faster or to make (something or someone) fasterI hate it when cars speed up [=accelerate] while you're trying to pass them.
The work has been slow so far but it should speed up soon.
They add another chemical to the photo developer to speed up the process.
— see also ↑speedup• • •Main Entry: ↑speed* * *
to move or happen faster; to make sth move or happen faster•
The train soon speeded up.
•
Can you try and
speed things upa bit?
•
They have speeded up production of the new car.
Useful english dictionary. 2012.