Skip to Content

English Club : Learn English : Vocabulary
Vocabulary : Phrasal Verbs : S : size up

size up

Meaning: to observe carefully and then form an opinion about a person or a situation

Synonym: assess, appraise (formal)

For example:

  • size sb/sth up We were sizing you up from the moment you walked in for your job interview.

  • size up sb/sth The boxers spent most of the first round sizing up each other.

Quick Quiz:

Someone who is good at sizing people up must be
  1. very big
  2. very entertaining
  3. very observant

Grammar explanation: separable and non-separable phrasal verbs

Get the ebook:
1000 Phrasal Verbs in Context

Discuss: size up

Phrasal Verb of the Day

This entry is in the following categories: