phrasal verb🧩 phrasal verb

hurry up

to move more quickly

What it means

To do something more quickly, or to tell someone else to speed up. Often used as a command when time is short.

Examples

  • Hurry up — the film starts in fifteen minutes and we still need tickets.
  • I wish the waiter would hurry up; we've been waiting ages for our food.
  • She hurried the children up so they wouldn't miss the school bus.
  • Can you hurry up with that report? The client is waiting on it.

Where it comes from

Separable when there's an object — 'hurry the kids up' — but usually inseparable as a command. The phrase has been in everyday English since the 1700s.

Related phrasal verbs

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