soak up

phrasal verb

soaked up; soaking up; soaks up

1

: to take in (liquid) : absorb

The rag soaked up most of the water.

2

: to enjoy feeling or experiencing (something pleasant) in usually a slow or relaxed way

We went to the beach and soaked up the sun/sunshine all afternoon.

I sat at my table for an hour soaking up the atmosphere of the café.

The performers stood on the stage, soaking up the applause.

3

: to learn and remember (something) quickly

He eagerly soaked up every word she said.

She has an ability to soak up new information very quickly.

4

: to use a large amount of (money, supplies, etc.)

This project is soaking up resources that could be used elsewhere.

Examples of soak up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Offseason signings Trendon Watford, Jabari Walker and Dominick Barlow figure to soak up some frontcourt minutes as well, but none are traditional centers by any means. —Bryan Toporek, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025

Texas now has more than 12 gigawatts of battery capacity, which can soak up the glut of cheap solar and wind energy produced during the day and discharge it to consumers when the sun sets. —Brian Deese, Foreign Affairs, 9 Sep. 2025

Transfers and impact freshmen soaked up most of the offseason conversation about the Big Ten quarterbacks, but after two weeks of action, the league’s holdovers have far outperformed the newcomers. —Scott Dochterman, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025

After checking in, tour the lobby and halls to soak up some of that history. —Cu Fleshman, Travel + Leisure, 7 Sep. 2025

Rhymes for soak up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup