upstart

American  

[uhp-stahrt, uhp-stahrt] / ˈʌpˌstɑrt, ʌpˈstɑrt /

noun

1. a person who has risen suddenly from a humble position to wealth, power, or a position of consequence.

2. a presumptuous and objectionable person who has so risen; parvenu.

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adjective

1. being, resembling, or characteristic of an upstart.

verb (used without object)

• upstarts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• upstarted,
  past participle,  past
• upstarting
  present participle

1. to spring into existence or into view.

2. to start up; spring up, as to one's feet.

verb (used with object)

• upstarts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• upstarted,
  past participle,  past
• upstarting
  present participle

1. to cause to start up.

upstart British  

noun

1. 1. a person, group, etc, that has risen suddenly to a position of power or wealth

   2. ( as modifier )

      an upstart tyrant

      an upstart family

2. 1. an arrogant or presumptuous person

   2. ( as modifier )

      his upstart ambition

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verb

1. archaic (intr) to start up, as in surprise, etc

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• upstartness
  noun

Inflected Forms

Participles

• upstarting
  present
• upstarted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• upstart
  simple
• upstarts
  simple
• have upstarted
  perfect
• has upstarted
  perfect
• am upstarting
  progressive
• are upstarting
  progressive
• is upstarting
  progressive
• have been upstarting
  perfect progressive
• has been upstarting
  perfect progressive

Past

• upstarted
  simple
• had upstarted
  perfect
• was upstarting
  progressive
• were upstarting
  progressive
• had been upstarting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will upstart
  simple
• will have upstarted
  perfect
• will be upstarting
  progressive
• will have been upstarting
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of upstart

1275–1325; Middle English (v.); see up-, start

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Explanation

An upstart is someone who's cocky and arrogant, and who doesn't show much respect for other people. There are many ways of starting up trouble — one is by being an upstart. Upstarts are people who are full of themselves and dismissive of others. Often, an upstart is a young person or newcomer. A new employee who acts like he knows more than everyone else is an upstart. An arrogant rookie on a sports team is an upstart. In the 1500s, upstart and start-up were both used to mean the same thing, "one newly risen in importance."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

upstart upstarts upstarted upstarting

We are a culture enamored of the child prodigy, the precocious upstart, the tender sprouting genius.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

Pipeline giant Energy Transfer, whose boss is a backer of the upstart bourse, said it would move its primary listing there.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

Most major automakers, including Ford, have backed pending legislation to ban China’s upstart companies from making or selling cars in the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil says a lead investor has been secured to keep the upstart tour afloat, and the golfers will be majority equity holders.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

I move toward the young upstart, and he retreats.

From "The One and Only Ivan" by Katherine Applegate

Under pressure from Chinese upstarts, the company saw an 8% drop in net GLP-1 sales in China in 2025 and lowered the list price of two such products in that market earlier this year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

As high-school math students gear up to buy the newest version of Texas Instruments’ TI-84 graphic calculator, cheaper upstarts are trying to break the company’s decades-old grip on the market.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026

Palantir’s CEO taps into Corporate America’s angst about the growing power of AI upstarts.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026

The design-software company has struggled to convince investors that its pricing model and artificial-intelligence offerings are enough to compete with cheaper upstarts, and Bank of America’s Tal Liani isn’t optimistic that sentiment will change.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 7, 2026

Masters of power politics, engineers of genius, the Mexica were also upstarts and pretenders, arrivistes who falsely claimed a brilliant line of descent.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

In an industry where guerrilla tactics pay off, Kahn upstarted the upstarts.

From Time Magazine Archive

Further inside the heart of the city upstarted the intoxications of sin and the terrible beggars with their maimed children.

From Memories of Hawthorne by Rose Hawthorne Lathrop

Then labor came next, and the conflict began With monsters and beasts famed in song; And heroes upstarted, as rulers of man, And the weak sought the aid of the strong.

From The Poems of Schiller — Third period by Friedrich Schiller

And the hard rocks upstarted From the sand make the couch where he lies, Thy Krishna, sad-hearted.

From Indian Poetry Containing "The Indian Song of Songs," from the Sanskrit of the Gîta Govinda of Jayadeva, Two books from "The Iliad Of India" (Mahábhárata), "Proverbial Wisdom" from the Shlokas of the Hitopadesa, and other Oriental Poems. by Sir Edwin Arnold

Instantly upstarted Lyubim Tsarevich, put on his armour, and leapt upon his steed.

From The Russian Garland being Russian Folk Tales by J. R. de Rosciszewski

Then they shook their medicine-pouches O'er the head of Hiawatha, 145Danced their medicine-dance around him; And upstarting wild and haggard, Like a man from dreams awakened, He was healed of all his madness.

From The Song of Hiawatha An Epic Poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Then excuse me, we'll be parting, doleful fowl," I cried, upstarting; "Get thee back to—the Red River, or the Nile's sand-cumbered shore!

From Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 101, October 31, 1891 by Sir F. C. (Francis Cowley) Burnand

At the sound, The knight, upstarting from his dreamy trance, High raised his vizor, and his bugle rang, Answering.

From The Poetical Works of William Lisle Bowles Vol. 2 by George Gilfillan

No; one of the firemen remained to watch over it, and guard against the upstarting of any sneaking spark that might have managed to conceal itself.

From Fighting the Flames by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne

It was as if you saw a flame upstarting before you, waving tremulously here and there, but burning and resistless in its white heat.

From A Strange Disappearance by Anna Katharine Green

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