I. PREPOSITION, ADVERB, AND ADJECTIVE USES
Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.
Note: 'Up' is often used with verbs of movement such as ‘jump’ and ‘pull’, and also in phrasal verbs such as ‘give ~’ and ‘wash ~’.
Please look at category 22 to see if the expression you are looking for is shown under another headword.
1.
If a person or thing goes ~ something such as a slope, ladder, or chimney, they move away from the ground or to a higher position.
They were climbing ~ a narrow mountain road...
I ran ~ the stairs and saw Alison lying at the top...
The heat disappears straight ~ the chimney.
? down
PREP
•
Up is also an adverb.
Finally, after an hour, I went ~ to Jeremy’s room...
Intense balls of flame rose ~ into the sky...
He put his hand ~.
? down
ADV: ADV after v, oft ADV prep/adv
2.
If a person or thing is ~ something such as a ladder or a mountain, they are near the top of it.
He was ~ a ladder sawing off the tops of his apple trees...
The Newton Hotel is halfway ~ a steep hill.
? down
PREP
•
Up is also an adverb.
...a research station perched 4000 metres ~ on the lip of the crater.
ADV: ADV after v
3.
You use ~ to indicate that you are looking or facing in a direction that is away from the ground or towards a higher level.
Paul answered, without looking ~...
Keep your head ~, and look around you from time to time.
ADV: ADV after v
4.
If someone stands ~, they move so that they are standing.
He stood ~ and went to the window...
He got ~ and went out into the foyer.
ADV: ADV after v
5.
If you go or look ~ something such as a road or river, you go or look along it. If you are ~ a road or river, you are somewhere along it.
A line of tanks came ~ the road from the city...
We leaned on the wooden rail of the bridge and looked ~ the river...
He had a relation who lived ~ the road.
? down
PREP: v PREP n
6.
If you are travelling to a particular place, you can say that you are going ~ to that place, especially if you are going towards the north or to a higher level of land. If you are already in such a place, you can say that you are ~ there. (mainly SPOKEN)
I’ll be ~ to see you tomorrow...
He was living ~ North...
I live here now, but I’ve spent all my time ~ in Swaziland.
ADV: ADV after v, be ADV, oft ADV prep/adv
7.
If you go ~ to something or someone, you move to the place where they are and stop there.
The girl ran the rest of the way across the street and ~ to the car...
On the way out a boy of about ten came ~ on roller skates...
He brought me ~ to the bar and introduced me to Dave.
ADV: ADV after v, usu ADV to n
8.
If an amount of something goes ~, it increases. If an amount of something is ~, it has increased and is at a higher level than it was.
They recently put my rent ~...
Tourism is ~, jobs are ~, individual income is ~...
Germany’s rate has also risen sharply, ~ from 3 percent to 4.5 percent...
Over the decade, women in this category went ~ by 120%.
? down
ADV: ADV after v, be ADV, oft ADV to/by amount
9.
If you are ~, you are not in bed.
Are you sure you should be ~?...
Soldiers are ~ at seven for three hours of exercises.
ADJ: v-link ADJ
10.
If a period of time is ~, it has come to an end.
The moment the half-hour was ~, Brooks rose...
When the six weeks were ~, everybody was sad that she had to leave.
= over
ADJ: v-link ADJ
11.
You say that a road is ~ when it is being repaired and cannot be used. (BRIT)
Half the road was ~ in Leadenhall Street, so their taxi was obliged to make a detour.
ADJ: v-link ADJ
12.
If a baseball player is ~, it is their turn to bat.
ADJ: v-link ADJ
13.
If a computer or computer system is ~, it is working. Compare down .
ADJ: v-link ADJ
14.
People sometimes say ‘Up yours!’ as an insult when you have said something to annoy them or make them angry. (INFORMAL, RUDE)
‘Up yours,’ said the reporter and stormed out into the street.
EXCLAM
15.
If someone who has been in bed for some time, for example because they have been ill, is ~ and about, they are now out of bed and living their normal life.
How are you Lennox? Good to see you ~ and about.
PHRASE: v-link PHR
16.
If you say that something is ~, you mean that something is wrong or that something worrying is happening. (INFORMAL)
What is it then? Something’s ~, isn’t it?...
Mr. Gordon stopped talking, and his friends knew something was ~.
PHRASE: V inflects
17.
If you say to someone ‘What’s ~?’ or if you tell them what’s ~, you are asking them or telling them what is wrong or what is worrying them. (INFORMAL)
‘What’s ~?’, I said to him.—‘Nothing much,’ he answered...
Let’s sit down and then you can say what’s ~.
PHRASE
18.
If you move ~ and down somewhere, you move there repeatedly in one direction and then in the opposite direction.
He continued to jump ~ and down like a boy at a football match...
I strolled ~ and down thoughtfully before calling a taxi...
There’s a lot of rushing ~ and down the gangways.
PHRASE: PHR after v
19.
If you have ~s and downs, you experience a mixture of good things and bad things.
Every relationship has a lot of ~s and downs...
The organisation has had its ~s and downs.
...the ~s and downs of parenthood.
PHRASE
20.
If something is on the ~ or on the ~ and ~, it is becoming more successful. (BRIT INFORMAL)
They’re saying that the economy is on the ~...
It was a great year for music, people had money, opportunities, hope–things were on the ~ and ~.
PHRASE: usu v-link PHR
21.
If someone is on the ~ and ~, they are honest and sincere. (AM INFORMAL)
I’m a pretty good judge of men. If you’re honest and on the ~ and ~, I’ll be able to tell it.
PHRASE: usu v-link PHR
22.
~ in arms: see arm
II. USED IN COMBINATION AS A PREPOSITION
Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.
Please look at category 9 to see if the expression you are looking for is shown under another headword.
1.
If you feel ~ to doing something, you are well enough to do it.
Those patients who were ~ to it could move to the adjacent pool...
His fellow-directors were not ~ to running the business without him.
PREP-PHRASE: PREP n/-ing
2.
To be ~ to something means to be secretly doing something that you should not be doing. (INFORMAL)
Why did you need a room unless you were ~ to something?...
They must have known what their father was ~ to...
PREP-PHRASE
3.
If you say that it is ~ to someone to do something, you mean that it is their responsibility to do it.
It was ~ to him to make it right, no matter how long it took...
I’m sure I’d have spotted him if it had been ~ to me...
PREP-PHRASE: oft v-link PREP n to-inf
4.
Up until or ~ to are used to indicate the latest time at which something can happen, or the end of the period of time that you are referring to.
Please feel free to call me any time ~ until half past nine at night...
Up to 1989, the growth of per capita income averaged 1 per cent per year.
PREP-PHRASE
5.
You use ~ to to say how large something can be or what level it has reached.
Up to twenty thousand students paid between five and six thousand dollars...
It could be ~ to two years before the process is complete.
PREP-PHRASE: PREP amount
6.
If you say that something is not ~ to much, you mean that it is of poor quality. (BRIT INFORMAL)
My own souffles aren’t ~ to much...
PHRASE: v-link PHR
7.
If someone or something is ~ for election, review, or discussion, they are about to be considered.
A third of the Senate and the entire House are ~ for re-election.
PREP-PHRASE
8.
If you are ~ against something, you have a very difficult situation or problem to deal with.
The chairwoman is ~ against the greatest challenge to her position...
They were ~ against a good team but did very well.
PREP-PHRASE
9.
~ to your ears: see ear
~ to par: see par
~ to scratch: see scratch
III. VERB USES
(~s, ~ping, ~ped)
1.
If you ~ something such as the amount of money you are offering for something, you increase it.
He ~ped his offer for the company...
= increase
VERB: V n
2.
If you ~ and leave a place, you go away from it, often suddenly or unexpectedly.
One day he just ~ped and left.
VERB: V and v