1. The act of building up an accumulation
   "I envied his rapid buildup of assets"; "a military buildup in preparation for the invasion"
    
2. The result of the process of accumulation
   "the buildup of leaves blocked the drain pipes"
    
3. Highly favourable publicity and praise
   "his letter of recommendation gave her a terrific buildup"

1. Enlarge, develop, or increase by degrees or in stages
   "build up your savings"
    
2. Form or accumulate steadily
   "Resistance to the manager's plan built up quickly"; "Pressure is building up at the Indian-Pakistani border";
   - work up, build
    
3. Bolster or strengthen
   "build up confidence";
   - work up, build, ramp up
    
4. Change the use of and make available or usable
   "The remote areas of the country were gradually built up";
   - develop
    
5. Prepare oneself for a military confrontation
   "troops are building up on the Iraqi border";
   - arm, fortify, gird

Derived forms: building up, builds up, buildups, built up

Type of: accretion, accrual, accruement, accumulation, ameliorate, amend, better, develop, fix, gear up, improve, increase, meliorate, mend, packaging, prepare, promo [informal], promotion, promotional material, publicity, ready, set, set up

Encyclopedia: Buildup