ˈ ̷ ̷ ̷ ̷ˈ ̷ ̷ noun
Etymology: up (I)
1. : an honest or respectable course — used chiefly in the phrase on the up-and-up
it's on the up-and-up. Go ahead and start your investigation — Erle Stanley Gardner
an occupation of free love considered strictly on the up-and-up — Hendrik de Leeuw
2. : an upward course especially toward an improved state — used chiefly in the phrase on the up-and-up
business was on the up-and-up all through 1936 — Benjamin Stolberg