shoot up

verb

shot up; shooting up; shoots up

transitive verb

1
: to shoot or shoot at especially recklessly
cowboys shooting up the town
2
: to inject (a narcotic drug) into a vein

intransitive verb

: to inject a narcotic into a vein
shoot-up noun

Examples of shoot up in a Sentence

gas prices shot up seemingly overnight
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.
If Trump takes back its 15 electors, his odds of winning shoot up to around 93%, according to Silver. Joe Walsh, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024 That number shot up to 67% turnover among researchers, union members say. Shawna Chen, Axios, 2 Nov. 2024 That average performance shoots up to 3.9% when looking at just the tightest races from that period. Alex Harring, CNBC, 5 Nov. 2024 Interestingly, that number shot up to 71% if the training was free and offered during regular work. Aytekin Tank, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for shoot up 

Word History

First Known Use

1890, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of shoot up was in 1890

Dictionary Entries Near shoot up

Cite this Entry

“Shoot up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shoot%20up. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.

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!