build up

verb

1. 1

   enlarge, develop, or increase by degrees or in stages

   build up your savings

2. 2

   change the use of and make available or usable

   develop land

   The country developed its natural resources

3. 3

   form or accumulate steadily

   Resistance to the manager's plan built up quickly

   Pressure is building up at the Indian-Pakistani border

4. 4

   bolster or strengthen

   We worked up courage

   build up confidence

5. 5

   prepare oneself for a military confrontation

   The U.S. is girding for a conflict in the Middle East

   troops are building up on the Iraqi border