ENGLISH
REFERENCE

buy up

idiom
Meaning

To buy the whole of; to purchase the entire stock of something.


Origin

disputed origin

From buy + up.

Examples
SIMPLE

Investors buy up all the cheap houses in this area.

CONTEXTUAL

The store owner noticed that customers would buy up his entire stock of fresh bread before noon every single day.

COMPLEX

Anticipating a severe shortage of raw materials, the large corporation moved quickly to buy up every available supply from the local market.

Anchors to
Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    been there, done that, bought the T-shirt

    Expresses the speaker's complete familiarity with a situation, with overtones of cynicism or exhaustion.

  2. 02

    buy a dog and bark oneself

    To do something that one has hired someone else to do.

  3. 03

    buy a ticket to

    Used to indicate that someone is in agreement with an assertion, statement, or suggestion.

  4. 04

    buy and hold

    A passive investment strategy where an investor purchases an asset and retains it for many years, rather than trading it frequently.

  5. 05

    buy into

    To believe (something, especially something implausible); to accept (a craze, fad, or notion) as valid.

  6. 06

    buy it

    To believe any particular assertion or idea; to support it.

  7. 07

    buy out

    to purchase the entire stock or extent of something

  8. 08

    buy straw hats in winter

    Of stocks, to buy when both demand and price are low, so as to sell when demand and price are high.

Last updated April 17, 2026