warm-up

1 of 2

noun

ˈwȯrm-ˌəp 

variants or less commonly warmup

1

: the act or an instance of warming up

also : a preparatory activity or procedure

2

: a suit for exercise or casual wear consisting of a jacket or sweatshirt and pants

—often used in plural

called also warm-up suit

warm up

2 of 2

verb

warmed up; warming up; warms up

intransitive verb

: to engage in exercise or practice especially before entering a game or contest

broadly : to get ready

Synonyms

Noun

• curtain-raiser
• overture
• preamble
• preliminary
• prelude
• prologue
• prolog

Examples of warm-up in a Sentence

Noun

the couple's initial exchange of insults proved to be only a warm-up for their booze-fueled fight later that night

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

For most of her term, she’s been relegated to warm-up speaker and occasional Biden stand-in, delivering remarks at White House events with the president, attending summits and visiting foreign leaders when Biden is needed in DC or on another trip, or, like Thursday night, brought in to do clean-up. —Christian Paz, Vox, 28 June 2024

California Massive makeover of L.A. Convention Center moves ahead as Olympics loom June 19, 2024 The space underneath the floor could be used for a warm-up area and the call room, where athletes check-in before competing. —David Wharton, Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2024

Verb

But as the Dodgers right-hander completed another one-two-three inning, there was no one warming up in the team’s right-field bullpen. —Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2024

Mendoza had Nuñez warming up, but left Severino in to finish the job with Suzuki, seeing a pitcher who still wanted the ball. —Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 24 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1915, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1846, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

warm-up

noun

ˈwȯr-ˌməp

1

: the act or an instance of warming up

2

: a practice or set of exercises done before a game, contest, or workout

Medical Definition

warm-up

1 of 2 noun

ˈwȯr-ˌməp 

: the act or an instance of warming up

also : a procedure (as a set of exercises) used in warming up

warm up

2 of 2 intransitive verb

(ˈ)wȯr-ˈməp 

: to engage in preliminary exercise (as to stretch the muscles)

important to warm up properly before running