# settle up

CEFR B2 · Phrasal verb

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/settle-up
Updated: 2026-04-24

## Definition

to pay the money you owe, especially after a meal or a trip with other people.

For teachers: to pay a debt or a bill in full; often used in social contexts to describe the final resolution of shared expenses.

## Examples

- Let's settle up for the pizza now.
- After our weekend trip to the coast, we sat down to settle up and see who owed what.
- The business partners agreed to settle up their outstanding accounts before dissolving the company at the end of the fiscal year.

## Pitfalls

- Not "I will settle up you later." but "I will settle up with you later." — the preposition 'with' is required when the object is a person.

## Usage notes

- often used with 'with' to indicate the person being paid or 'for' to indicate the item.
- Teaching tip: contrast with 'pay back', which focuses on returning a loan; 'settle up' focuses on reaching a zero balance in a shared situation.

---

From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.