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soup up

 - 6 dictionary results

soup

  [soop] ,
Use soup up in a Sentence
–noun
1. a liquid food made by boiling or simmering meat, fish, or vegetables with various added ingredients.
2. Slang. a thick fog.
3. Slang. added power, esp. horsepower.
4. Slang. nitroglycerine.
5. Photography Slang. developing solution.
—Verb phrase
6. soup up, Slang.
a. to improve the capacity for speed or increase the efficiency of (a motor or engine) by increasing the richness of the fuel mixture or the efficiency of the fuel, or by adjusting the engine.
b. to give spirit or vivacity to; enliven: a political rally souped up by the appearance of the candidates.
—Idioms
7. from soup to nuts,
a. from the first through the last course of a meal.
b. from beginning to end; to a complete, encompassing degree; leaving nothing out.
8. in the soup, Informal. in trouble: He'll be in the soup when the truth comes out.
Origin:
1645–55; 1940–45 for def. 6; < F soupe, OF souppe, sope < Gmc; cf. D sopen to dunk. See sop

Related forms:
soupless, adjective
souplike, adjective

Synonyms:
1. broth, stock, potage.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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soup   (sōōp)   
n.  

  1. A liquid food prepared from meat, fish, or vegetable stock combined with various other ingredients and often containing solid pieces.

  2. A liquid rich in organic compounds and providing favorable conditions for the emergence and growth of life forms: primordial soup.

  3. Slang Something having the appearance or a consistency suggestive of soup, especially:

    1. Dense fog.

    2. Nitroglycerine.

  4. A chaotic or unfortunate situation.

Phrasal Verb(s):
soup up Slang To modify (something) so as to increase its capacity to perform or satisfy, especially to add horsepower or greater speed potential to (an engine or a vehicle).

Idiom(s):
in the soup Slang Having difficulties; in trouble.

[Middle English soupe, from Old French, of Germanic origin; see seuə-2 in Indo-European roots. Soup up, from soup, material injected into a horse to make it run faster (influenced by supercharge).]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary
soup

  1. n.
    nitroglycerin, a liquid explosive. (Underworld.) : Lefty was a master with the soup till he blew off his hand.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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soup (sth) up

  1. tv.
    to increase the power of something. (See also souped up.) : If only I could soup up this computer to run just a little faster.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

soup  (v.)
"increase the horsepower of an engine," 1921, probably from soup (n.) in slang sense of "narcotic injected into horses to make them run faster" (1911), influenced by supercharge (v.).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Idioms & Phrases

soup up

Make something more powerful; especially, add speed to an engine. For example, He was riding around in that car he'd souped up, or They had to soup up the sound system for the outdoor concert. [Slang; c. 1930]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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