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finish up

B1 informal separable both
In simple words

To do the last things needed to be completely done, or to end up somewhere.

Meanings

1 B1 informal

To complete the remaining parts of a task, meal, or activity.

"Finish up your homework before you turn on the television."

Grammar: separable
2 B1 idiomatic informal

To end up in a particular place or situation after a series of events.

"We took a wrong turn and finished up miles from the hotel."

Grammar: inseparable
Usage notes

Very common in everyday speech. When used intransitively, it often means to arrive at a final state ('we finished up in Paris'). When transitive, it means to complete the remaining portion of something. Slightly more emphatic than simply 'finish'.

Commonly used with

work meal meeting task report leftovers

Forms

Base
finish up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
finishes up
he/she/it
Past simple
finished up
yesterday
Past participle
finished up
have + pp
-ing form
finishing up
continuous

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