From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishmove up phrasal verb1 CHANGE FROM ONE THING TO ANOTHERUPto get a better job in a company, or change to a more advanced group, higher rank, or higher level To move up, you’ll need the right training. Share prices moved up this month. to The kids learn fast, and can’t wait to move up to the junior team. He was moving up the ladder (=getting higher and higher positions), and getting management experience. He’s moved up in the world (=got a better job or social position) in the last few years, and his new flat shows it.2 especially British EnglishMOVE/CHANGE POSITIONFORWARD to change position in order to make more space for other people or things or be near someone else There’s room for one more if everyone moves up a bit. → move→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
move up• Could you guys at the front move up a bit?• Suddenly a car moved up alongside Joseph and the driver shouted something at him.• FC Roma are slowly moving up the league table.• The bank clerks seemed to be working really slowly as I moved up the line.• With this win Williams moves up to third place in the world rankings.move to• The track world now awaits his move up to 5,000m.• As his income grew, he moved up to a Porsche.• In his early twenties he had moved up to a suit-and-necktie job as a salesman in New York.• He pointed out that the mark also moved up to about 73. 35 yen.• I had moved up to Allocation and Repayment then, and I sent him a blistering letter about it.• How long was it before they moved up to buying their joint compound by the quart?• Taylor moved up to Clearwater in 1997 and was disappointing again, hitting only.244.• Then they moved up to four-cell embryos-and now the results were dismal.• Texas A&M moved up to the No. 2 position. 