bring up
Britishverb
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to care for and train (a child); rear
we had been brought up to go to church
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to raise (a subject) for discussion; mention
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to vomit (food)
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(foll by against) to cause (a person) to face or confront
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(foll by to) to cause (something) to be of a required standard
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Raise from childhood, rear. For example, Bringing up children is both difficult and rewarding . [Late 1400s]
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Introduce into discussion, mention, as in Let's not bring up the cost right now . [Second half of 1800s]
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Vomit, as in She still felt sick but couldn't bring up anything . This usage was first recorded in Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (1719).
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.
My husband gets angry if I bring up the subject.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 6, 2026
Lyle Ungar, Professor in CIS and a co-author of the study, says social media can offer insight into concerns patients may not always bring up during medical visits.
From Science Daily • May 24, 2026
He never flinched, instead taking it upon himself to bring up prominent women with alopecia.
From Slate • May 23, 2026
I wanted the action to bring up that transition in perspective.
From Los Angeles Times • May 17, 2026
It was never my plan to bring up Uncle Max ever again, but something has changed.
From "Starfish" by Akemi Dawn Bowman
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.
