1 A2 informal
To cook food by frying it in a pan, usually quickly and informally.
"I fried up the leftover potatoes with some onions for a quick dinner."
separable
fry up
A2 informal separable transitive/intransitive
To cook food by frying it; also used as a noun to describe a traditional British cooked breakfast of fried foods.
In plain English
To cook food by frying it in a pan with oil. As a noun, a 'fry-up' is a big cooked British breakfast with things like eggs, bacon, and sausages.
What does "fry up" mean?
2 meanings, ordered from most common to least. Color-coded by CEFR level.
2 A2 idiomatic informal
As a noun (fry-up): a British cooked breakfast consisting of fried foods such as eggs, bacon, sausages, beans, and toast.
"After the long hike, we all agreed a fry-up was exactly what we needed."
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To fry something up — largely transparent.
Actually means
To cook food by frying it in a pan with oil. As a noun, a 'fry-up' is a big cooked British breakfast with things like eggs, bacon, and sausages.
Usage tip
Widely used in British and Irish English. The noun form 'a fry-up' (sometimes 'fry up') is extremely common and refers to the traditional full English or Irish breakfast. As a verb, it can be used broadly for any fried food. Common in both everyday speech and informal writing.
Words that pair with "fry up"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
eggs bacon sausages leftovers breakfast onions
How to conjugate "fry up"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
fry up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
fries up
he/she/it
Past simple
fried up
yesterday
Past participle
fried up
have + pp
-ing form
frying up
continuous
Hear "fry up" in the wild
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