Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

have one's back up

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.37 in modern English

Syllables
have one's back- up
IPA
30
Scrabble Score
14
Letters
2
Syllables
12
Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To be angry or defensive.

Example Sentences

Inflected Forms

has one's back up (present, singular) having one's back up (participle, present) had one's back up (participle, past) had one's back up (past)

Phrases

put someone's back up raise someone's hackles ruffle some feathers get someone's back up

Frequently Paired Words

put someone's back up raise someone's hackles ruffle some feathers get someone's back up

Synonyms

get one's dander up get one's Irish up

Questions

What does have one's back up mean?
To be angry or defensive.

How to pronounce have one's back up

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “have one's back up”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “have one's back up”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “have one's back up” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.