up against

Idioms  

1. Contending or confronted with, as in I'm up against a strong opponent in this election. This idiom is also put as up against it, which means “in serious difficulty, especially in desperate financial straits.” For example, When the collection agency called again, we knew we were up against it. [Late 1800s]

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Example Sentences

Swaine ran up against a brick wall — until he found a whistleblower who had a cache of documents.

From Salon • Jun. 25, 2026

There are several strike-slip faults where the two plates slide up against each other horizontally, sometimes snagging and building stress before violently rupturing and sometimes, as in Wednesday’s event, releasing another earthquake.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 25, 2026

That has pushed the dollar sharply up against its peers and is within a whisker of a four-decade peak against the yen.

From Barron's • Jun. 25, 2026

He’s also aware that, in some respects, he’s up against a time limit in terms of what he can shoot.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 24, 2026

Molly didn’t have a pulse and knew she ran colder than most, but it was like a block of ice had crawled up against her.

From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny

Related Words

• anti
• antithetical
• averse
• disputed
• hostile
• inimical
• opposing