rev up

present singular third person revs up · participle present revving up · participle past revved up · past revved up

1. idiomaticTo increase the speed of an engine, especially that of a stationary motor car.

   The huge Rolls-Royce engine revved up. Then the back wheels spun furiously, and clouds of smoke filled the air.

   2017, David Walliams [pseudonym; David Edward Williams], Bad Dad, London: HarperCollins Children’s Books, →ISBN

   Synonyms: give it the gun, tach up

2. broadlyslangtransitiveTo make (someone or something) more active; to energize.

   Blast out of the gate on Monday by listening to up-tempo music before your workout. Israeli scientists say this can raise your heart rate, rev you up for an intense exercise session, and temporarily boost muscle power by 10 percent.

   2008 January–February, “70 Ways to Improve Every Day of the Week”, in Men's Health, volume 23, number 1, →ISSN, page 134

3. broadlyintransitiveslangTo become more active.

   I didn't much want to leave again, but, though I'm not sure I exactly understand why, I just knew I had to rev up again to play this thing out.

   2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 225