wake somebody up

What it means

To cause someone to stop sleeping, usually by making noise, touching them, or calling out. Figuratively, it can mean to make someone suddenly aware of reality.

Examples

• Could you wake me up at six thirty tomorrow? I have an early flight.
• The thunderstorm woke the children up in the middle of the night.
• Strong coffee is the only thing that wakes him up properly in the mornings.
• The shocking news report woke a lot of people up to the crisis.

Where it comes from

Separable phrasal verb — 'wake him up' is required with pronouns, while 'wake up the baby' or 'wake the baby up' both work with nouns. Note the difference between 'wake up' (intransitive — you waking) and 'wake somebody up' (transitive).

Related phrasal verbs