upgraded; upgrading; upgrades
: to raise or improve the grade of: such as
a
: to improve (livestock) by use of purebred sires
b
: to advance to a job requiring a higher level of skill especially as part of a training program
c
: to raise the quality of
d
: to raise the classification and usually the price of without improving the quality
e
: to extend the usefulness of (something, such as a device)
f
: to assign a less serious status to
upgraded the patient's condition to good
: to replace something (such as software or an electronic device) with a more useful version or alternative
Upgrading to a new operating system can make people anxious, even under the best of circumstances.—
Macworld
MacworldSynonyms
Examples of upgrade in a Sentence
Noun
a slight upgrade in the roadway
The hotel offered us a room upgrade.
Verb
This course will help you to upgrade your computer skills.
They've upgraded the quality of their service.
The city is upgrading the sewage treatment plant.
The office is upgrading the telephone system.
They upgraded the hotel to attract more business patrons.
We were able to upgrade to first class.
We had reserved a double room, but the hotel upgraded us to a suite.
Recent Examples on the WebBill Lukitsch, Kansas City Star, 25 Apr. 2024
President Biden’s Build Back Better Bill—rightly lauded as a major achievement—never included a single dollar to support the upgrade of jails and detention centers, even before conservatives slashed its budget.
—Scott Guild, TIME, 23 Apr. 2024
The upgrades brought Oracle Park up to the standard with the rest of the league, where flashing LED lights have grown to be increasingly commonplace during celebrations and closer’s entrances.
—Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 23 Apr. 2024
Under the consolidation proposal, the money that was designated to pay for those upgrades would instead go toward the construction of new consolidated schools.
—Silas Allen, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 Apr. 2024
In front of quarterback Justin Herbert, the Chargers have five players who have been NFL starters, but the desire to become more imposing likely means an upgrade.
—Jeff Miller, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
All the big tech companies are trying to best each other with the ‘Hey, look what our AI can do now’ updates, and today, Facebook parent company Meta rolled out its latest upgrade in a version called Llama 3.
—Jennifer Jolly, USA TODAY, 18 Apr. 2024
Here are eight lease-friendly home upgrades, from least to most amount of work required.
—Ronita Choudhuri-Wade Of Nerdwallet, Quartz, 17 Apr. 2024
Family level starts at $175 and includes benefits for two adults and their children and grandchildren under 18 years old, with upgrade options to add up to three guests.
—Journal Sentinel, 12 Apr. 2024
Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 28 Apr. 2024
While the property had been around since 1964, it had never been upgraded outside of basic maintenance.
—Ural Garrett, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Apr. 2024
While Faith may have never left, the Hassayampa Inn has been upgraded with modern amenities since first opening in 1927.
—The Arizona Republic, 27 Apr. 2024
Fact check: Used pacemakers can get second life in pets after death or upgrade
The post claims a new law was passed banning pit bulls, but no such bill is found on Congress' website.
—USA TODAY, 26 Apr. 2024
Pakistan sends proxy forces into Kashmir and elsewhere to weaken India, and India responds by upgrading its larger and better-equipped army to be ready to attack Pakistan.
—Feroz Hassan Khan, Foreign Affairs, 23 Apr. 2024
France has spent $1.5 billion on altering and upgrading the city’s antiquated sewage system ahead of the Games as part of a wider plan to open up the river for public swimming by 2025.
—Nick Duffy, NBC News, 21 Apr. 2024
Police were dispatched to 23rd and Topping on a traffic accident shortly after midnight that was upgraded to a shooting while en route.
—Noelle Alviz-Gransee, Kansas City Star, 15 Apr. 2024
As for Robinson, he was upgraded to questionable on the Heat’s injury report for Sunday’s game before being ruled out.
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 15 Apr. 2024
Noun
Broader upgrades across the district — officials say every school would be touched in some way — amount to $66.7 million.
—Bill Lukitsch, Kansas City Star, 25 Apr. 2024
President Biden’s Build Back Better Bill—rightly lauded as a major achievement—never included a single dollar to support the upgrade of jails and detention centers, even before conservatives slashed its budget.
—Scott Guild, TIME, 23 Apr. 2024
The upgrades brought Oracle Park up to the standard with the rest of the league, where flashing LED lights have grown to be increasingly commonplace during celebrations and closer’s entrances.
—Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 23 Apr. 2024
Under the consolidation proposal, the money that was designated to pay for those upgrades would instead go toward the construction of new consolidated schools.
—Silas Allen, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 Apr. 2024
In front of quarterback Justin Herbert, the Chargers have five players who have been NFL starters, but the desire to become more imposing likely means an upgrade.
—Jeff Miller, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
All the big tech companies are trying to best each other with the ‘Hey, look what our AI can do now’ updates, and today, Facebook parent company Meta rolled out its latest upgrade in a version called Llama 3.
—Jennifer Jolly, USA TODAY, 18 Apr. 2024
Here are eight lease-friendly home upgrades, from least to most amount of work required.
—Ronita Choudhuri-Wade Of Nerdwallet, Quartz, 17 Apr. 2024
Family level starts at $175 and includes benefits for two adults and their children and grandchildren under 18 years old, with upgrade options to add up to three guests.
—Journal Sentinel, 12 Apr. 2024
Verb
The Panthers upgraded the wide receiver, running back, tight end, cornerback and linebacker depth charts while also adding competition on the defensive line.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 28 Apr. 2024
While the property had been around since 1964, it had never been upgraded outside of basic maintenance.
—Ural Garrett, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Apr. 2024
While Faith may have never left, the Hassayampa Inn has been upgraded with modern amenities since first opening in 1927.
—The Arizona Republic, 27 Apr. 2024
Fact check: Used pacemakers can get second life in pets after death or upgrade
The post claims a new law was passed banning pit bulls, but no such bill is found on Congress' website.
—USA TODAY, 26 Apr. 2024
Pakistan sends proxy forces into Kashmir and elsewhere to weaken India, and India responds by upgrading its larger and better-equipped army to be ready to attack Pakistan.
—Feroz Hassan Khan, Foreign Affairs, 23 Apr. 2024
France has spent $1.5 billion on altering and upgrading the city’s antiquated sewage system ahead of the Games as part of a wider plan to open up the river for public swimming by 2025.
—Nick Duffy, NBC News, 21 Apr. 2024
Police were dispatched to 23rd and Topping on a traffic accident shortly after midnight that was upgraded to a shooting while en route.
—Noelle Alviz-Gransee, Kansas City Star, 15 Apr. 2024
As for Robinson, he was upgraded to questionable on the Heat’s injury report for Sunday’s game before being ruled out.
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 15 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'upgrade.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near upgrade
Cite this Entry
“Upgrade.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/upgrade. Accessed 1 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
upgrade
1 of 2 noun
up·grade
ˈəp-ˌgrād 
1
: an upward grade or slope
2
: rise entry 2 sense 4
crime has been on the upgrade
1
: to raise to a higher grade or position
2
: to improve or replace especially software or a device for increased usefulness
Medical Definition
upgrade
transitive verb
up·grade
ˈəp-ˌgrād, ˌəp-ˈ
upgraded; upgrading
1
: to assign a less serious status to
upgraded the patient's condition from fair to good
2
: to reclassify (as a cancer, concussion, or bone fracture) to a more serious grade when the grades are numbered from least to most serious
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