uppity

American  

[uhp-i-tee] / ˈʌp ɪ ti /

adjective

Informal.

1. affecting an attitude of inflated self-esteem; haughty; snobbish.

2. rebelliously self-assertive; not inclined to be tractable or deferential.

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uppity British  

/ ˈʌpɪtɪ /

adjective

1. not yielding easily to persuasion or control

2. another word for uppish

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Usage

More context on uppity Uppity means "haughty" and "snobbish"—an adjective for someone who puts on airs, someone who is self-important. But, this descriptor has a very racist past, used particularly to disparage Black people as "not remembering their place as inferior."Given this explicitly racist past, it is a good idea to cut down on using uppity. Read our next section for some wise alternatives. If knowing the history of uppity has got you reflecting on your word choices, this slideshow, "These Common Words Have Offensive Histories," discusses many other words whose place in your vocab you may want to reconsider. 

Other Word Forms

• uppityness noun

Etymology

Origin of uppity

1875–80, probably up + -ity, extended form of -y ¹; pernickety

Explanation

People might describe you as uppity if you're bossy and stuck-up. An uppity waiter at a fancy restaurant might look visibly disgusted if you wear your oldest sneakers and your overalls to dinner. Someone who's a snob or who acts like a pompous know-it-all deserves to be described as uppity. It's an informal way to talk about a snooty or arrogant person, and it first appeared in African American English in the nineteenth century. The initial published use of uppity was in "Uncle Remus," a collection of African American folk stories adapted by a white journalist in 1881.

Example Sentences

There's also the politics: drivers are a loud, powerful voting bloc, and they "get uppity" when they see parking space taken away, he says.

From BBC • Feb. 25, 2026

The household was vegetarian before this was trendy or socially acceptable, and yet not in an uppity way.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2025

The wealthiest and most international city in America, its grand mansions and comfortable houses would obviously be useful as a base for an invading army that was just beginning a campaign against uppity colonials.

From Washington Post • Mar. 15, 2023

Others think he’s too uppity, so he is let go.

From New York Times • Jan. 26, 2022

But some were bourgeois and uppity, had a sense of comfort and confidence she did not possess.

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times