upstream

adverb or adjective

up·​stream ˈəp-ˈstrēm 

1

: in the direction opposite to the flow of a stream

2

: in or to a position within the production stream closer to manufacturing processes

make most of its money upstream, selling cheap crude … to refineries

—John Quirt

3

biochemistry : toward the beginning of a series of cellular processes : preceding a linked molecular event occurring in a sequence

Many signaling pathways possess intrinsic negative feedback by which a downstream event in a pathway turns off an upstream event.

—Harvey Lodish et al.

Examples of upstream in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Southern California’s rivers and creeks once teemed with large, silvery fish that arrived from the ocean and swam upstream to spawn. —Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2024

Now that river levels have reached 51.0 feet, water will begin to cover more areas of Kellogg Avenue from east of Delta Avenue upstream to near Coney Island to near Eight Mile Road. —Haadiza Ogwude, The Enquirer, 17 Apr. 2024

Koetter said Nelson has spent the better part of the spring swimming upstream while trying to learn the Broncos’ playbook and adjust to new terminology. —Ron Counts, Idaho Statesman, 16 Apr. 2024

The Estabrook Falls fish passage, which will ensure most fish can move upstream on the Milwaukee River. —Caitlin Looby, Journal Sentinel, 24 Jan. 2024

But a 2019 analysis showed that a more strategic approach to site selection for future dam development—mainly, placing new dams upstream of existing dams—could generate equal or more electricity with nearly no additional loss of sediment. —Jeff Opperman, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024

And with rising seas gnawing away at its southern edge and dams hemming the Mekong River upstream, farming in the fertile delta is getting harder. —Aniruddha Ghosal, Quartz, 13 Mar. 2024

Cataract’s rebirth miles upstream from this spot, where the scale of the dam’s impact is still so apparent, keeps DeHoff and Flynn grounded in their mission. —Cassidy Randall, Rolling Stone, 18 Feb. 2024

Increasing sections of Kellogg Avenue from east of Delta Avenue upstream to near Coney Island to near Eight Mile Road are flooded, as well as parts of Humbert Avenue in the East End of Cincinnati. —The Enquirer, 1 Feb. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1681, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

upstream

adverb or adjective

up·​stream ˈəp-ˈstrēm 

: at or toward the beginning of a stream : against the current

salmon swimming upstream

Medical Definition

upstream

adverb or adjective

up·​stream ˈəp-ˈstrēm 

1

: in a direction along a molecule of DNA or RNA opposite to that in which transcription and translation take place and toward the end having a phosphate group attached to the position labeled 5′ in the terminal nucleotide

… stretches of DNA upstream of genes—are known as promoters.

—Matt Ridley, Time

compare downstream sense 1

2

: toward the beginning of series of cellular processes : preceding a linked molecular event occurring in a sequence

It's equally important to focus on additional mechanisms that are upstream of amyloid formation and mechanisms downstream that are involved in the actual degenerative processes within neurons.

—Marc Tessier-Lavigne, quoted in Science