1 C1 neutral
To equip a factory or production facility with the necessary machinery and tools for manufacturing.
"The company invested £5 million to tool up the new plant for electric vehicle production."
separable
tool up
C1 neutral separable transitive/intransitive
To equip a factory or workplace with the necessary machinery and tools; also (British slang) to arm oneself or others with weapons.
In plain English
To get all the right equipment or weapons ready for a job or fight.
What does "tool up" mean?
3 meanings, ordered from most common to least. Color-coded by CEFR level.
2 C1 idiomatic slang
(British slang) To arm oneself or a group with weapons, especially before a fight or criminal activity.
"The gang had tooled up before the confrontation with their rivals."
separable
3 C1 idiomatic neutral
To equip oneself or a team with the necessary tools, skills, or resources for a task.
"Before starting the project, we need to tool ourselves up with the right software and training."
separable
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To supply with tools, bringing them up to what is needed.
Actually means
To get all the right equipment or weapons ready for a job or fight.
Usage tip
Has two distinct registers: a neutral manufacturing/industrial sense (tooling up a factory) and a British criminal slang sense (arming oneself before a confrontation). Context makes the meaning clear. The industrial sense is formal; the weapons sense is informal/slang.
Words that pair with "tool up"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
factory plant workforce gang production weapons
How to conjugate "tool up"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
tool up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
tools up
he/she/it
Past simple
tooled up
yesterday
Past participle
tooled up
have + pp
-ing form
tooling up
continuous
Hear "tool up" in the wild
Listen to native speakers using "tool up" in real YouTube videos — click a clip to watch it on Looplines.
Keep exploring
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