add up
verb
added up; adding up; adds up
1
a
: to come to the expected total
the bill doesn't add up
b
: to form an intelligible pattern : make sense
her story just doesn't add up
2
a
: amount sense 1b
—used with to
the play adds up to a lot of laughs
b
: to amount to a lot
just a little each time, but it all adds up
: to form an opinion of
added him up at a glance
Examples of add up in a Sentence
whether we take the 4:00 train or the 4:15 bus, it adds up to the same thing: they both get us back too late
even if we pool all our money, it won't add up to enough to rent a beach house for a week
Recent Examples on the Web
However, football is on TV five days a week in the fall, so the food can really add up.
—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 20 Sep. 2025
That's $400 a month in utility and gasoline savings that could keep adding up, 15 years after the Green Idea House was finished.
—Jeff Brady, NPR, 20 Sep. 2025
These micro-contributions add up, enabling even the smallest enterprises to participate in large-scale change.
—Christopher Marquis, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
The annual price tag at many prestigious schools hovers just under $100,000 when adding up tuition, fees, room and board, and books.
—Susan Alaimo, USA Today, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for add up
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 20 Sep. 2025
That's $400 a month in utility and gasoline savings that could keep adding up, 15 years after the Green Idea House was finished.
—Jeff Brady, NPR, 20 Sep. 2025
These micro-contributions add up, enabling even the smallest enterprises to participate in large-scale change.
—Christopher Marquis, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
The annual price tag at many prestigious schools hovers just under $100,000 when adding up tuition, fees, room and board, and books.
—Susan Alaimo, USA Today, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for add up
Cite this Entry
“Add up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/add%20up. Accessed 22 Sep. 2025.
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