close up

Dissimilated from Middle English upclosen (“to close up, stop up, seal”).

• IPA^(key): /kləʊzˈʌp/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

close up (third-person singular simple present closes up, present participle closing up, simple past and past participle closed up)

1. (intransitive) To close (remove a gap) completely or fully.

   Some flowers close up at night to stay protected from the cold.

2. (intransitive) To move nearer together so that a gap is removed.

   The crowd closed up and I couldn't get through to the train.

3. (transitive, intransitive) To shut a building or a business for a period of time.

   Synonym: close

   We finally managed to close up the shop for the night at about 10 o'clock.

   The car factory has closed up for the August holidays.

4. (intransitive) Of a cut or other wound: To heal.

   With stitches, the cut should close up in a week to ten days.

5. (intransitive) To become less 'open' or communicative; to shrink back.

   to close up emotionally

• close up shop

• couples, culpeos, opuscle, up close, upclose