speed (sth) up
— phrasal verb with speed uk/spiːd/us/spiːd/verb [ I or T, usually + adv/prep ] sped or speeded, sped or speeded
to happen or move faster, or to make something happen or move faster:
This drug may have the effect of speeding up your heart rate.
Can the job be speeded up in some way?
The tape speeded up towards the end.
I think you need to speed up a bit (= drive faster) - we're going to be late.
The economy shows signs of speeding up (= increasing activity).
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Increasing and decreasing speed of motion
- accelerant
- accelerate
- acceleration
- catch
- catch (sb) up
- decelerate
- downshift
- foot
- gun
- motor
- quicken
- retard
- retardation
- slacken
- slow
- slow (sb/sth) down/up
- speed
- throttle
- throttle (sth) back/down
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