This week, a listener got us thinking about what "up" is up to in phrases like "eat up" and "clean up." Specifically, Shelley Otis wanted to know whether this "up" is actually doing anything:
"I often use, and have heard, the word 'up' after certain words. For example, 'I’m going to wash up the dishes,' instead of just 'I’m going to wash the dishes.' Or, 'Did you lock up the house?' instead of just 'Did you lock the house?' Or even in something like 'I’m going to fix up this thing' instead of 'I’m going to fix this thing.' Why do we include 'up' when it isn’t really needed?"
The "up" that Otis asked about functions adverbially and often signals a sense of completion or finality. We frequently see this with verbs involving consumption or destruction, as in "Make sure you eat up your vegetables." The "up" implies there better not be any vegetables left on your plate when you're done eating.
When paired with other verbs, "up" can mark progress toward an endpoint. Take "divide up" — if you're dividing up an estate, you're distributing every last part until there's nothing left. This "up" also appears with verbs that relate to cleaning or organizing — think "clean up," "fix up," "polish up." And in many cases, "up" acts as an intensifier: 'hurry up,' 'listen up,' 'pay up.'
So is "up" redundant? We don't think so. Professor Anne Curzan says, "Sometimes it's important to be emphatic, and certainly a lot of those verbs - pay up, clean up, firm up - they're very idiomatic. I don't think people should worry about using them."
To hear more about "up" including the phrase "fixer upper," listen to the audio above.
