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Showing results for up against. Search instead for bump+against.
Synonyms

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]

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.

Or the debut campaign at Inter where, up against the pound-for-pound best defenders in the world, he toyed with Serie A markers and netted 34 goals in all competitions?

From BBC • Apr. 21, 2026

Rival Intuit has been investing in AI for eight years, while Xero is up against six well-known competitors vying for market share, they note.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026

Pepsi CFO Steve Schmitt said that the company’s production and shipping network was holding up against that backdrop.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 16, 2026

Have you ever wondered how you'd fare going up against the world's best?

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026

The nearest I came to doing away with Gandy was the time I came in from fishing and leaned my pole up against the house.

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls

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.