get-up-and-go

American  

[get-uhp-uhn-goh] / ˈgɛtˌʌp ənˈgoʊ /

noun

1. energy, drive, and enthusiasm.

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get-up-and-go British  

noun

1. informal energy, drive, or ambition

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Etymology

Origin of get-up-and-go

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

I'm only 33 and I was a get-up-and-go person.

From BBC • Nov. 9, 2020

In a 2010 interview with The Times, Miller suggested he would be pleased if that get-up-and-go mantra stood as his legacy.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 24, 2018

We are a run-and-gun, get-up-and-go kind of people who for too long have felt the responsible institutions of society are trying to put us flat on our backs.

From US News • May 4, 2016

To counteract that stereotype, an older worker who is physically fit can exude a get-up-and-go attitude.

From New York Times • Jan. 16, 2015

When she wasn’t fussing about him seeming glad to bring home the bent cans and weevily rice and flour we couldn’t sell at the store, she was complaining about his not having any get-up-and-go.

From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns