tune up

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tune up (third-person singular simple present tunes up, present participle tuning up, simple past and past participle tuned up)

1. (transitive) To make adjustments (to an engine or bicycle drivetrain) in order to improve its performance.
2. (intransitive) To make preparations for vigorous exercise; to warm up.
3. (intransitive) To begin to sing or play music.
4. (intransitive, music) To tune one's instrument in preparation for performance.
5. (chiefly US, transitive, idiomatic) To beat up (someone).
   • 2007, Michael Berish, Reflections from the Pit‎^[1], →ISBN:

     “We finally stopped roustin' him and decided to tune him up instead, every chance we got.”
     “Tune him up?”
     “Yeah, that's an expression for beatin' the living dog shit outta somebody.”

   • 2015, Joe Peters, Bill Fleming, Code Black, →ISBN, page 264:

     “I mean, I had to tune her up a bit. She bitched a lot and never did any work. Sometimes, you know, you just gotta get their attention, whack 'em a little."

   • 2017, Jeff Gulvin, The Contract: A John Q Thriller‎^[2], →ISBN:

     [T]hey couldn't tune him up because the murder had to look like he died in his sleep.

• (improve the performance of an engine): soup up

• tune

• tune-up