ENGLISH
REFERENCE

fluff up

phr. v..
B2 Upper Intermediate Oxford General-service

phr. v.. to shake or pat something soft, like a pillow or your hair, so it looks full and light again.

phr. v.. to make something soft or fibrous more voluminous by shaking, patting, or loosening the material.


SIMPLE

She fluffs up the pillows every morning.

CONTEXTUAL

The bird fluffed up its feathers to stay warm in the cold wind.

COMPLEX

Before the guests arrived, the decorator took a moment to fluff up the cushions and straighten the silk throws.

Particles
up
Separability
optional
Pattern
fluff + (object) + up
Usage

usually used with soft objects like pillows, cushions, hair, or feathers.

Teaching tip

this is a great example of a phrasal verb where the particle 'up' indicates an increase in volume or size; contrast with 'flatten' or 'squash'.

Pitfall

He fluffed up it before sleeping.He fluffed it up before sleeping.when using a pronoun like 'it', it must go between the verb and the particle in this optional separable phrasal verb.

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