bottom-up

[bot-uhm--uhp]

adjective

1. of, relating to, or originating with the common people, nonprofessionals, or the lower ranks of an organization.

   The five-day workweek was a bottom-up movement that business leaders and politicians finally supported.

2. organized or proceeding from smaller, more detailed units to the larger, more general structure.

   His bottom-up approach to research involves immersing himself in communities to better understand the lives of local entrepreneurs.

bottom-up

adjective

1. from the lowest level of a hierarchy or process to the top

   a bottom-up approach to corporate decision-making

Word History and Origins

Origin of bottom-up¹

First recorded in 1930–35 as an adjective and in 1890–95 as an adverb, both deriving from the phrase “from the bottom up ”

Related Words

• reversed www.thesaurus.com
• upturned