up
uhp
Up (adverb) means Toward or in a higher position; away from the ground. Example: “She looked up at the tall building.”
adverb
1
Toward or in a higher position; away from the ground.
"She looked up at the tall building."
"Prices have gone up again this year."
"The balloon floated up into the clear blue sky."
preposition
1
Toward the top, source, or far end of something.
"They walked up the hill."
"The boat sailed up the river."
"She cycled up the lane to reach the village shop."
adjective
1
Out of bed and active; awake.
"Is anyone up yet? It's almost noon."
"The children were up early on Christmas morning."
"I was still up at midnight finishing my essay."
2
Working properly; functioning, especially of a computer system.
"The website is finally back up after the outage."
"Is the server up, or are you still seeing errors?"
"Our network was up all weekend without any problems."
3
In a cheerful or positive mood.
"He sounded really up on the phone after his job interview."
"The whole team was up after winning the final match."
"She's been feeling really up since she got the good news."
verb
1
To increase the amount or level of something.
"The company decided to up its offer to close the deal."
"The shop upped its prices after the supplier raised costs."
"If you up the heat, the sauce will thicken faster."
noun
1
A good, positive period or situation.
"Every relationship has its ups and downs."
"We celebrated the ups of the year as well as the downs."
"After a long run of bad luck, he finally had an up."
How to use up
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA tiny word with dozens of uses, but at its core it means higher, more, active, or working — the opposite of down.
Common mistake
Watch for phrasal verbs where "up" changes the meaning entirely (give up, look up, mess up) — these need to be learned as whole units, not word-by-word.
Common pairings
up and running
ups and downs
up for it
Vocabulary Flow
Build your vocabulary from words like up.
Vocabulary Flow serves the next word, and the next — meaning, pronunciation and an example each time. Practice at your level, or learn English in your own language.
Start vocabulary practice
Word forms
- Plural
- ups
- Third person singular
- ups
- Past tense
- upped
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
She looked _____ at the tall building.
Etymology
From Old English upp, up, from Proto-Germanic *upp — one of the oldest and most basic words in the language, related to "over" and "above."
Related words
Frequently asked questions
What does “up” mean?
The word “up” means toward or in a higher position; away from the ground. In plain terms, a tiny word with dozens of uses, but at its core it means higher, more, active, or working — the opposite of down.
How do you pronounce “up”?
“Up” is pronounced uhp (/ʌp/ in IPA).
How do you use “up” in a sentence?
Here is “up” used in a sentence: “She looked up at the tall building.”
What is the opposite of “up”?
The opposite of “up” — its antonyms — is down.
What part of speech is “up”?
Depending on how it is used, “up” can be an adverb, a preposition, an adjective, a verb and a noun.
Where does the word “up” come from?
The word “up” comes from Old English. From Old English upp, up, from Proto-Germanic *upp — one of the oldest and most basic words in the language, related to "over" and "above.".
Is “up” a common word?
“Up” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A1 level.
How many meanings does “up” have?
“Up” has 7 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: toward or in a higher position; away from the ground.
What is the difference between "up" and "upward" or "upwards"?
All three describe movement toward a higher position, but "up" is the everyday word ("prices went up"), while "upward" and "upwards" are slightly more formal and emphasise direction ("the path slopes upward"). "Upward" also works comfortably as an adjective, as in "an upward trend".
What does "up" add in phrasal verbs like "eat up" or "finish up"?
In many phrasal verbs, "up" signals completion or thoroughness rather than direction: "eat up" means eat completely, and "clean up" means clean thoroughly. This is why the meaning of a phrasal verb often cannot be worked out from "up" alone.
Can "up" be used as a verb?
Yes, "up" works informally as a verb meaning to raise or increase, as in "The airline upped its prices." It is common in journalism and casual speech but rare in formal writing.
What is the difference between "up" and "up to"?
Followed directly by a noun, "up" means toward the top, source, or far end of it: "walk up the road," "climb up the ladder." "Up to" instead marks a limit — "up to ten people," "up to now" — so the two are not interchangeable.
Featured in
Vocabulary lists that include up:
