puffing (up)

present participle of puff (up)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for puffing (up)
Verb
  • The image was of Uncle Sam, rolling up his sleeves and wading in to do the right things.
    — Robert Stone, Rolling Stone, 11 Sep. 2026
  • The two are still heavily involved in the organization, aiding in fundraising efforts and literally rolling up their sleeves while at the Bloomington facility.
    — Heather Bushman, IndyStar, 14 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • The protests are quickly blowing up as a hot topic in the election campaign to replace President Emmanuel Macron next May.
    — Greg Norman-Diamond, FOXNews.com, 6 Oct. 2026
  • That was something they were primed to be paying attention to, since Mora had been seen blowing up at Summers the week prior, when CSU was busy giving up 59 points to UTSA.
    — Jason Kirk, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • China is building up its military and AI capabilities despite limited access to advanced computer chips.
    — Josh Boak, Fortune, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Boone said the final few steps for Judge’s return include building up his workload because he has been sidelined for over three months with a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side.
    — Chris Kirschner, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • By merging the two failing car companies, Marchionne created the seventh-largest vehicle manufacturer in the world, increasing Fiat’s value more than tenfold.
    — Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The company has been gradually increasing its use of AI across back office and customer-facing roles and has introduced an AI chatbot to its website to help customers plan their trips.
    — Sam Forsdick, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Puffing (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/puffing%20%28up%29. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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