1 C1 informal
To drink coffee, especially to boost one's energy or alertness before an activity.
"You'd better coffee up before the 6 a.m. conference call."
inseparable
coffee up
C1 informal intransitive
Informal, mainly North American: to drink coffee, especially to become alert or energised.
In plain English
To drink coffee to wake yourself up or get ready for something.
What does "coffee up" mean?
2 meanings, ordered from most common to least. Color-coded by CEFR level.
2 C1 informal
To supply someone with coffee.
"The assistant coffeed everyone up before the long strategy session began."
inseparable
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To supply oneself with coffee — transparent compound formation.
Actually means
To drink coffee to wake yourself up or get ready for something.
Usage tip
Common in casual North American speech. Often used reflexively or as a command: 'Coffee up before the meeting!' Can also imply providing others with coffee. Relatively new coinage following the pattern of 'fuel up', 'load up', etc.
Words that pair with "coffee up"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
morning meeting shift quickly first
How to conjugate "coffee up"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
coffee up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
coffees up
he/she/it
Past simple
coffeed up
yesterday
Past participle
coffeed up
have + pp
-ing form
coffeeing up
continuous
Hear "coffee up" in the wild
Listen to native speakers using "coffee up" in real YouTube videos — click a clip to watch it on Looplines.
Keep exploring
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