grownup

[ grohn-uhp ]

/ ˈgroʊnˌʌp /

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See synonyms for grownup on Thesaurus.com

noun

a mature, fully grown person; adult.

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Origin of grownup

First recorded in 1805–15; noun use of verb phrase grow up

Other definitions for grownup (2 of 2)

grown-up

[ grohn-uhp ]

/ ˈgroʊnˈʌp /

adjective

having reached the age of maturity.

characteristic of or suitable for adults: grown-up behavior; grown-up fiction.

Origin of grown-up

First recorded in 1625–35; adj. use of verb phrase grow up

OTHER WORDS FROM grown-up

grown-upness, noun

How to use grownup in a sentence

Dog Day Afternoon was on TV: an Al Pacino movie for grownups, but Dad let me watch it with him anyway.
Almost Famous: A Father's Day Story|Alex Belth|June 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They had that air of grownups trying to make things seem normal in front of the kids.
The Cost: What Stop and Frisk Does to a Young Man’s Soul|Rilla Askew|May 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Grownups, it turns out, have just as much to gain from disappearing texts as teenagers.
Confide Is the Best Way to Keep Your Dastardly Deeds Hidden—For Now|Daniel Gross|January 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Grownups can still be killed by anybody in Texas, miles and miles from a hospital.
P.J. O’Rourke on Pot, Putin, and Polygamy|P. J. O’Rourke|January 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST

On vacation, most kids and grownups want time at the ends of the day to check devices.
Should You Be Your Kid’s Facebook Friend?|Catherine Steiner-Adair|August 22, 2013|DAILY BEAST
There may be no more than innocent imitation of grownups, as the following case shows.
The Sexual Life of the Child|Albert Moll
Mr. Manheim went here and there, shaking hands with the grownups and joking with the boys.
Dan Carter and the River Camp|Mildred A. Wirt
There set the three other grownups, holdin' their hands over their ears, with pained lookin' faces.
The Confessions of a Daddy|Ellis Parker Butler
The next window to the right overlooked the part of the terrace where the "grownups" of the family used to sit before luncheon.
Childhood|Leo Tolstoy
To the small boy looking round the room it seemed as though twenty awful grownups were waiting in a dead silence to eat him up.
A Writer's Recollections (In Two Volumes), Volume I|Mrs. Humphry Ward

British Dictionary definitions for grownup

grown-up

adjective

having reached maturity; adult

suitable for or characteristic of an adult

noun

an adult

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