warm up — become friendlier
phrasal verbB2IELTS 6+neutraloccasional
To start feeling more comfortable and friendly with people, especially after being shy or quiet at first.
Say it like a native
Textbook She gradually became more sociable as the evening progressed.
Native She warmed up once she got to know us.
'Warm up' is the natural verb for someone relaxing and becoming friendlier.
Pattern: warm up (to/towards someone/something)
In use
- It took a while, but she finally warmed up to her new classmates.relationships
- When I meet new people, I usually need some time to warm up before I feel comfortable talking.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ He warmed up with us after a while.
✓ He warmed up to us after a while.
'Warm up TO' people (or just 'warm to') — not 'with'.
Common collocations
warm up + to— to us, to the idea, after a bit, eventually
Don't confuse it
'Warm up' is about becoming more open or friendly, not about temperature.
Related
- warm up (prepare the body) — Another meaning of 'warm up' is 'prepare the body'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.