upsweep

American  

[uhp-sweep, uhp-sweep] / ʌpˈswip, ˈʌpˌswip /

verb (used with object)

upswept, upsweeping

1. to sweep upward.

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verb (used without object)

upswept, upsweeping

1. to be arranged in an upsweep.

noun

1. a sweeping upward, as an increase in elevation or a steep slope.

2. a hairdo produced by having the hair combed or brushed upward to the top of the head; an upswept hairdo.

3. a strongly pronounced rise in activity, as in business.

4. a curved shape of the lower jaw of some animals.

upsweep British  

noun

1. a curve or sweep upwards

2. an upswept hairstyle

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verb

1. to sweep, curve, or brush or be swept, curved, or brushed upwards

Etymology

Origin of upsweep

First recorded in 1885–90; up- + sweep ¹

Example Sentences

Chicly dressed with a complicated upsweep that evokes Hitchcock’s blondes, she moves as if in a trance all the way through the front doors, where she sees people rioting.

From New York Times

Features of interest include letter spacing, how letters connect, and the drop or rise of “legs” below or above a letter, such as the tail of a small letter “g” or the upsweep of a small letter “d.”

From Scientific American

There he watches Ally belt out the Edith Piaf standard “La Vie en Rose,” in a sheath and upsweep, her arched artificial brows adding quizzical punctuation to her face.

From New York Times

April was still wearing her hair in a messy upsweep and her mother’s ratty old fur stole, even though her grandmother had given her a great new jacket.

From Literature

It also occurred to her that April wasn’t going to be able to wear an upsweep anymore, but she didn’t say anything about that.

From Literature