upon

American  

[uh-pon, uh-pawn] / əˈpɒn, əˈpɔn /

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.

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upon British  

/ 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

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upon Idioms  

1. 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).

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Etymology

Origin of upon

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

Example Sentences

Parliament's standards commissioner is investigating whether he should have declared that sum upon becoming an MP in his published register of financial interests.

From BBC • Jul. 9, 2026

If the facilities are federally owned, Zoley replied, there are “more protections from unwarranted litigation that infringes upon the activities of the ICE processing centers.”

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 7, 2026

The video was quickly seized upon by Talarico, who depicted Paxton as out of touch with Texans.

From Salon • Jul. 7, 2026

In part, Sony invited all this anger upon itself through some horrible timing.

From Slate • Jul. 7, 2026

Our workstations are narrow enough for this clandestine communication; we all had to pass weight and height exams upon hiring to make sure we fit in the chairs.

From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse