upon
Americanpreposition
-
up and on; upward so as to get or be on.
He climbed upon his horse and rode off.
-
in an elevated position on.
There is a television antenna upon every house in the neighborhood.
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in or into complete or approximate contact with, as an attacker or an important or pressing occasion.
The enemy was upon us and our soldiers had little time to escape. The Christmas holiday will soon be upon us and we have hardly begun to buy gifts. The time to take action is upon us.
-
immediately or very soon after.
She went into mourning upon her husband's death.
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on the occasion of.
She was joyful upon seeing her child take his first steps.
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on (in any of various senses, used as an equivalent of on with no added idea of ascent or elevation, and preferred in certain cases only for euphonic or metrical reasons).
He swore upon his honor as a gentleman.
preposition
-
another word for on
-
indicating a position reached by going up
climb upon my knee
-
imminent for
the weekend was upon us again
Etymology
Origin of upon
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English; up (adverb) + on (preposition)
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
SAG-AFTRA’s recognition on Sunday is one of several lifetime achievement awards bestowed upon the actor over his extensive six-decade career, which is defined by two of Hollywood’s biggest film franchises.
From Los Angeles Times
The author drops us into an Eden of wonder, where once upon a time we first cracked the codes of Dr. Seuss and “Goodnight Moon.”
Upon his death, many observers expected greater power for the Revolutionary Guards, which are deeply entrenched in the Iranian economy.
From Barron's
Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York served upon the bankruptcy trustee a grand jury subpoena seeking certain information and documents.
From Los Angeles Times
Upon releasing the files to the public earlier this year, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche reiterated the point.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
