add up to

verb

To have a particular effect in combination.

“The costs of all the parts added up to five times the cost of the car.”

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Meanings

verbadd up to (third-person singular simple present adds up to, present participle adding up to, simple past and past participle added up to)

present singular third person adds up to · participle present adding up to · participle past added up to · past added up to

  1. transitiveTo have a particular effect in combination.

    The costs of all the parts added up to five times the cost of the car.

    1 more example

    Increasing prices and frozen wages add up to hardship for the poorer families.

Cite this entry
APA

add up to. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/add%20up%20to

MLA

“add up to.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/add%20up%20to. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “add up to,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/add%20up%20to.

Source: add up to on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.