draw up

verb

drew up; drawn up; drawing up; draws up

transitive verb

1
: to bring (a body of troops) into array
2
: to prepare a draft or version of
draw up plans
3
: to bring to a halt
4
: to straighten (oneself) to an erect posture especially as an assertion of dignity or resentment

intransitive verb

: to come to a halt
the car drew up at the door

Examples of draw up in a Sentence

he drew up his horse outside the tavern drew up the troops into a line along the ridge
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.
The department has laid off some 10,000 workers under a plan drawn up by Kennedy and the White House's Department of Government Efficiency cost-cutting task force. Alexander Tin, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2025 In this case, whoever drew up the list of those to be fired at FDA either didn’t understand or didn’t care about the role support staff play for scientists reviewing new medications or inspectors looking for unsanitary conditions at food plants, the former officials said. Dan Morrison, USA Today, 2 Apr. 2025 Corporate disquiet Tariff anxieties are also ricocheting through boardrooms as executives draw up a fresh batch of earnings reports to start releasing around mid-April. Steve Kopack, NBC news, 28 Mar. 2025 The International Seabed Authority (ISA) has worked for more than a decade to draw up regulations for a future deep-sea mining industry. Daniel Ackerman, NPR, 27 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for draw up

Word History

First Known Use

1608, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of draw up was in 1608

Cite this Entry

“Draw up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/draw%20up. Accessed 10 Apr. 2025.

Kids Definition

draw up

verb
1
: to arrange (as troops) in order
2
: to prepare a draft or version of
draw up plans
3
: to straighten (oneself) to an erect posture
drew himself up angrily and left the room
4
: to bring or come to a stop
the car drew up at the door

More from Merriam-Webster on draw up

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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