size-up

[ sahyz-uhp ]

noun

1. an appraisal or estimation, especially as the result of sizing up:

   asking for a size-up of the new office equipment.

size up

verb

1. tr to make an assessment of (a person, problem, etc)
2. to conform to or make so as to conform to certain specifications of dimension

Word History and Origins

Origin of size-up¹

Noun use of verb phrase size up

Idioms and Phrases

Make an estimate, opinion, or judgment of, as in She sized up her opponent and decided to withdraw from the election . This usage transfers measuring the size of something to broader meaning. [Late 1800s]

Example Sentences

They are organizers and disruptors, optimists and skeptics, some of them sizing up the current political landscape looking for reasons to hope and others demanding — at the top of their lungs — immediate action.

From Los Angeles Times

Across Los Angeles, some religious leaders are sizing up their own properties, encouraged by new legislation making it easier to develop the land.

From Los Angeles Times

She had been brushing broken-up road surface off the pavement at her house when she sized up the potholes and said to herself: "Och, just go for it".

From BBC

He surveyed the parking lot, where entrepreneurs speaking fast-paced Spanish, Mandarin, Arabic and other tongues were sizing up new arrivals, offering rides and other services.

From Los Angeles Times

That leaves the focus on his trial or creates a split-screen day between the two presidential rivals — a valuable contrast as voters in battleground states size up their options, Biden aides believe.

From New York Times

Related Words

• audit
• check
• check out
• consider
• criticize
• delve into
• explore
• inspect
• investigate
• ponder
• pore over
• probe
• read
• research
• review
• scan
• screen
• scrutinize
• study
• survey