up-tempo
Americannoun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of up-tempo
First recorded in 1945–50
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He rediscovered his rhythm when compiling an up-tempo 103 break and crafted a wonderful 111 - his eighth century of the tournament - to round off the afternoon's play.
From BBC ● Jan. 18, 2026
Los Alamitos’ no-huddle, up-tempo offense started to cause problems for San Clemente’s defense.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 30, 2025
The up-tempo tune depicts life growing up in a dreary community bereft of imagination or spirit and hammers home the record’s emotional restlessness: “Nothing but the dead and dying back in my little town.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2025
Serra players kept cramping on defense, repeatedly slowing down Sierra Canyon’s up-tempo offense.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2025
He clicks some stuff on one of the computers and a bass heavy up-tempo beat blasts through the speakers.
From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas
Do you think you’re stronger in ballads or up-tempos?
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2024
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
