hype up

Meaning

To 'hype up' means to excite someone about something, or to promote a product, event, or person intensely (sometimes with exaggeration). It can be used transitively ('hype up the crowd') or reflexively ('hype myself up').

Examples

• The DJ did a great job of hyping up the crowd before the main band came on stage.

  The DJ did a great job of hyping up the crowd before the main band came on stage.

• They hyped up the movie so much in the trailers that the actual film was a bit of a disappointment.

  They hyped up the movie so much in the trailers that the actual film was a bit of a disappointment.

• I need to listen to some fast music to hype myself up before my workout.

  I need to listen to some fast music to hype myself up before my workout.

• Don't hype him up too much; he's a good player, but he's not a superstar yet.

  Don't hype him up too much; he's a good player, but he's not a superstar yet.

• The media is hyping up this new video game as the best release of the decade.

  The media is hyping up this new video game as the best release of the decade.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ I am very hyped for the concert.

  ✓ I am very hyped up for the concert.

  While 'hyped' is common in very casual slang, 'hyped up' (or 'hyped about') is the standard phrasal adjective form to express feeling excited.

• ✗ They hyped the product up to the sky.

  ✓ They hyped up the product.

  The phrasal verb 'hype up' already carries the meaning of extreme promotion, so adding idioms like 'to the sky' is redundant and unnatural.

Related Expressions

Practice

• The marketing team is trying to ___ the new smartphone before its official release.

  💡 A phrasal verb meaning to promote heavily to create excitement.

  Show answer

  hype up

• We listened to loud music in the car to ___ ourselves ___ for the game.

  💡 A phrasal verb meaning to make oneself excited or energized.

  Show answer

  hype up