upon

[uh-pon, uh-pawn]

preposition

1. up and on; upward so as to get or be on.

   He climbed upon his horse and rode off.

2. in an elevated position on.

   There is a television antenna upon every house in the neighborhood.

3. in or into complete or approximate contact with, as an attacker or an important or pressing occasion.

   The enemy was upon us and our soldiers had little time to escape. The Christmas holiday will soon be upon us and we have hardly begun to buy gifts. The time to take action is upon us.

4. immediately or very soon after.

   She went into mourning upon her husband's death.

5. on the occasion of.

   She was joyful upon seeing her child take his first steps.

6. on (in any of various senses, used as an equivalent of on with no added idea of ascent or elevation, and preferred in certain cases only for euphonic or metrical reasons).

   He swore upon his honor as a gentleman.

upon

/ əˈpɒn /

preposition

1. another word for on

2. indicating a position reached by going up

   climb upon my knee

3. imminent for

   the weekend was upon us again

Word History and Origins

Origin of upon¹

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English; up (adverb) + on (preposition)

Word History and Origins

Origin of upon¹

C13: from _up + _on

Idioms and Phrases

see act on (upon); call on (upon); chance on (upon); come across (upon); come on (upon); count on (upon); dawn on (upon); dwell on (upon); enter on (upon); fall back on (upon); fall on (upon); grow on (upon); hard on (upon); hit on (upon); incumbent upon; light on (upon); once upon a time; pitch on (upon); play on (upon); put upon; seize on (upon); set at (upon); take it upon oneself; wait on (upon); weigh on (upon); work on (upon).

Example Sentences

Born in St. Thomas in what was then the Danish West Indies, Pissarro was sent to school in the Paris suburbs at age 12, but declined upon his return five years later to take up his father’s profession as a merchant.

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The cavernous, quiet terminal created a bad feeling upon landing at home, like you had just entered a place that wasn’t what it used to be.

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Competing prediction-market giant Polymarket is gearing up to re-enter the U.S. soon, and it’s expected to primarily feature sports markets upon launch.

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Taking place over the last couple of months, the team has been searching and identifying species at both known and potential river sites in boroughs such as Newham, Richmond upon Thames and Barnet.

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But the singer said his connection to fans was more important than any of the other honours bestowed upon him.

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