Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

well up

Word Rarity Common

Frequency: Zipf frequency 5.87 in modern English

Syllables: well up
IPA

11

Scrabble Score

6

Letters

1

Syllables

5

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To gradually or steadily flow upwards or outwards so as to begin to fill or overflow something.

Intransitive verb

verb

To accumulate within one, to the point of overwhelming one.

adj

Well versed; well acquainted (in or on).

Colloquial

Example Sentences

"Oil was welling up out of the borehole."
"As soon as I heard news of his death, tears started to well up in my eyes."
"A spring wells up in the centre of the village, and watercress beds lie beside the stream running alongside the main street."
"Emotion welled up inside me."
"A barely audible groan welled up in the Captain's throat as the grinning Freedom Fighter circled around behind the helpless American Soldier. The groan sputtered into a strangled, "No… no… don't.... " as Randall felt the juicy tip of the man's tumescent cock jab against his hair-ringed, virgin asshole."
"“I had to leave my job because I just couldn’t … yeah,” Tina says, welling up."

Usage

Inflected Forms

wells up (present, singular) welling up (participle, present) welled up (participle, past) welled up (past) more well up (comparative) most well up (superlative)

Synonyms

swell

Questions

What does well up mean?: To gradually or steadily flow upwards or outwards so as to begin to fill or overflow something.

How to pronounce well up

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