1
: toward or at the rear of a theatrical stage
2
: away from a motion-picture or television camera
1
2
: of or relating to the rear of a stage
upstaged; upstaging; upstages
1
: to draw attention away from
upstaging the competition
2
: to force (an actor) to face away from the audience by staying upstage
3
: to treat snobbishly
: the part of a stage that is farthest from the audience or camera
Examples of upstage in a Sentence
Verb
We don't want the flower girl upstaging the bride.
My apple pie was upstaged by her chocolate cake.
Recent Examples on the Web
Lila Battis, Travel + Leisure, 2 Aug. 2023
Will Dyanne upstage, or even replace, Jocelyn? Dan Levy is Jocelyn’s publicist Photo: Eddy Chen In a clip shared by Tesfaye, Levy’s character is seen trying to talk Jocelyn into doing a cover feature in Rolling Stone.
—Jasmine Li, Vulture, 31 May 2023
Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Nov. 2022
Colón concludes the piece on her own, upstage; like the music, her movement stops rather than ends.
—Jeffrey Gantz, BostonGlobe.com, 22 Oct. 2022
Leslie Wayne, New York Times, 20 May 2024
The company’s big stations are perhaps upstaged only by the fanbase.
—Bill Lukitsch, Kansas City Star, 18 May 2024
Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 18 Apr. 2024
Kenyatta has recorded video messages for his estranged daughter, which are projected on the upstage wall, and his face, big as a billboard, looms above Nina’s ugly room, his eyes as staring and huge as a god’s.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 22 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for upstage 
Adverb
Anne Egerman stood upstage, flitting through Stephen Sondheim’s lyrics in her lilting soprano.
—Lila Battis, Travel + Leisure, 2 Aug. 2023
Will Dyanne upstage, or even replace, Jocelyn? Dan Levy is Jocelyn’s publicist Photo: Eddy Chen In a clip shared by Tesfaye, Levy’s character is seen trying to talk Jocelyn into doing a cover feature in Rolling Stone.
—Jasmine Li, Vulture, 31 May 2023
Adjective
Ngin strides rapidly upstage and forcefully tears down a set of hanging white curtains.
—Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Nov. 2022
Colón concludes the piece on her own, upstage; like the music, her movement stops rather than ends.
—Jeffrey Gantz, BostonGlobe.com, 22 Oct. 2022
Verb
As its blades whirred, guests craned their necks to watch as Mr. Boesky emerged in a tuxedo and black tie, by all accounts looking like a latter-day James Bond and completely upstaging the host family.
—Leslie Wayne, New York Times, 20 May 2024
The company’s big stations are perhaps upstaged only by the fanbase.
—Bill Lukitsch, Kansas City Star, 18 May 2024
Noun
For much of the three-hour show, the band members are sequestered with their instruments in the soundproof, fishbowl-like live room upstage.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 18 Apr. 2024
Kenyatta has recorded video messages for his estranged daughter, which are projected on the upstage wall, and his face, big as a billboard, looms above Nina’s ugly room, his eyes as staring and huge as a god’s.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 22 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for upstage
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'upstage.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Upstage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/upstage. Accessed 7 Jun. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
upstage
1 of 2 adverb or adjective
up·stage
ˈəp-ˈstāj 
: toward or at the part of the stage or set farthest from the audience or the motion-picture or television camera
upstage
2 of 2 verb
up·stage
ˌəp-ˈstāj
: to steal attention away from
children upstaging adult performers
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