up and

phrase

informal
: to do something specified in a sudden and unexpected way
(U.S.) One day, he just up and left home.
Then she ups and marries some guy she'd just met.
One day, he just upped and left home.

Examples of up and in a Sentence

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When an elevator broke down at Cleveland Elementary last school year, staff mobilized to find three colleagues to carry Carolyn Diaz up and down the stairs so the ESL teacher, who uses a wheelchair, could reach her students. — Angie Orellana Hernandez, Washington Post, 15 Oct. 2026 SpaceX is working to get three Starship pads up and running on Florida's Space Coast, and the company aims to break ground on a $100 billion, 12-pad complex in Louisiana next year. — Mike Wall, Space.com, 15 Oct. 2026 The remote pilot program in Framingham is scheduled to run through at least March 2027, and it's expected to take a few years before the Braintree remote terminal is up and running. — Neal Riley, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026 Users can stow it in their pockets, then open it up and watch a movie on its matte, light-deflecting surface. — Andrew R. Chow, Time, 15 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for up and

Rhymes for up and

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Browse Nearby Words

up-anchor
up and
up and about
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Cite this Entry

“Up and.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/up%20and. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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