upon

[ uh-pon, uh-pawn ]
See synonyms for upon on Thesaurus.com
preposition
  1. up and on; upward so as to get or be on: He climbed upon his horse and rode off.

  2. in an elevated position on: There is a television antenna upon every house in the neighborhood.

  1. 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.

  2. immediately or very soon after: She went into mourning upon her husband's death.

  3. on the occasion of: She was joyful upon seeing her child take his first steps.

  4. 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.

Origin of upon

1
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English; up (adverb) + on (preposition)

Words Nearby upon

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use upon in a sentence

  • It is thinner than that of chronic bronchitis, and upon standing separates into three layers of pus, mucus, and frothy serum.

    A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd
  • Other things being equal, the volume of voice used measures the value that the mind puts upon the thought.

    Expressive Voice Culture | Jessie Eldridge Southwick
  • He was too drowsy to hold the thought more than a moment in his mind, much less to reflect upon it.

    The Wave | Algernon Blackwood
  • In the year of misery, of agony and suffering in general he had endured, he had settled upon one theory.

    The Homesteader | Oscar Micheaux
  • He turned his eyes upon her; but no sympathy was in their beams; no belief in the semblance of her tears.

British Dictionary definitions for upon

upon

/ (əˈpɒn) /


preposition
  1. another word for on

  2. indicating a position reached by going up: climb upon my knee

  1. imminent for: the weekend was upon us again

Origin of upon

1
C13: from up + on

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with upon

upon

see act on (upon); call on (upon); chance on (upon); come across (upon); come on (upon); count on (upon); dawn on (upon); dwell on (upon); enter on (upon); fall back on (upon); fall on (upon); grow on (upon); hard on (upon); hit on (upon); incumbent upon; light on (upon); once upon a time; pitch on (upon); play on (upon); put upon; seize on (upon); set at (upon); take it upon oneself; wait on (upon); weigh on (upon); work on (upon).

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.