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

Upon her return, she faced withering criticism over the city’s preparation for the high winds, as well as Fire Department operations and the overall emergency response.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Rangers' search for a replacement quickly alighted upon Gerrard, who was of interest to club's American owners in the summer, before a number of issues resulted in him withdrawing from the running.

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Upon release, Ghost of Tsushima was pretty beloved by a specific right-wing culture-war gamer crowd, who placed it on a pedestal specifically as a way to directly attack The Last of Us: Part 2.

Read more on Slate

Serving in the ninth game he hit two double-faults in quick succession before recovering, only to ultimately be broken upon committing another.

Read more on Barron's

McAllister recounted his feeling of shock and “mild panic” upon seeing a line of over 100 people in front of the pop-up last Saturday, more than an hour before opening.

Read more on MarketWatch