up-and-coming
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of up-and-coming
An Americanism dating back to 1840–50
Explanation
If someone is up-and-coming, they're verging on being really successful or famous. An up-and-coming rock band is just starting to be popular and beginning to draw crowds at their shows. If you're an up-and-coming magician, you might be a little bit new to doing magic tricks, but you work hard at it and are actually pretty good. Local fans might be starting to mention your name when someone's looking for a birthday party entertainer: "Have you seen that amazing up-and-coming magician who pulls rabbits out of her hat and then turns them into bouquets of flowers?"
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.
On the opposite side of the lobby is SparkHouse, a private members club and creative hub for up-and-coming musicians and creatives.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 2, 2026
A change like this would normally be a disaster for an up-and-coming industry competing against entrenched electricity sources like coal and natural gas.
From Barron's • Jun. 26, 2026
An up-and-coming UK rapper's thanked Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda for "changing my life" after he praised one of her freestyles.
From BBC • Jun. 18, 2026
Not many up-and-coming actors can say they worked with Steven Spielberg in so prominent a role.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 16, 2026
The main house had been remodeled by up-and-coming architect Frank Lloyd Wright.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
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.
