startup

American  

[stahrt-uhp] / ˈstɑrtˌʌp /

Or start-up

noun

1. the act or fact of starting something; a setting in motion.

2. a new business venture, or a new commercial or industrial project.

   a small, 5-month-old internet startup.

---

adjective

1. of or relating to the beginning of such a venture or project, especially to an investment made to initiate it.

   high start-up costs for construction of a new facility.

Etymology

Origin of startup

First recorded in 1550–60; noun use of verb phrase start up

Explanation

The word startup refers to either the process of beginning something or a new entrepreneurial business. The startup costs for your sister's startup might be higher than she thinks. Most startups offer their customers something innovative — a new product, like a dog toy that's truly indestructible, or an ingenious service, like a smartphone app that tells you where the closest public restrooms are. A startup begins with a great idea, is backed by investments of money, and is intended to grow very quickly — assuming it's successful.

Example Sentences

In March, Starlink crossed the symbolic threshold of 10,000 satellites -- and now has 10,162 in orbit, the startup added.

From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026

Azure, its cloud-computing platform, has become the infrastructure backbone for AI startup OpenAI and other companies building AI applications.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026

A year after OpenAI released the wildly successful ChatGPT, Musk launched a competing AI startup, xAI.

From BBC • Apr. 29, 2026

Agrawal, Parallel’s founder and CEO, said the startup plans to use its latest cash infusion to build out a sales and marketing team, as well as grow its research and development function.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026

“His family sponsored the building and helped pay for the startup costs, but everything else—my salary, the materials, the books—it’s all funded by the Ministry of Education.”

From "Amal Unbound" by Aisha Saeed