bottom-up
Americanadjective
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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.
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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.
adjective
Etymology
Origin of bottom-up
First recorded in 1930–35 as an adjective and in 1890–95 as an adverb, both deriving from the phrase “from the bottom up ”
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.
"Planets form from the bottom up, by sticking small-scale planetesimals together. But forming a planet at the edge of the instability zone would be like trying to stick snowflakes together in a hurricane," he said.
From Science Daily • Apr. 19, 2026
"We've had a 'no see, no hear' policy for about 10 years and we decided, rather than change the whole school, that we would try from the bottom up", head teacher Leanne Symonds says.
From BBC • Jan. 30, 2026
The U.S. financial system is strongest when trust naturally flows from the bottom up.
From Barron's • Dec. 18, 2025
If the leaders will not lead, then it is up to the people to lead from the bottom up.
From Salon • Feb. 25, 2025
Denna gave the remains of her apple a speculative look, then began to eat it from the bottom up.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
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.
