upended; upending; upends
1
: to set or stand on end
: to rise on an end
Examples of upend in a Sentence
He upended the bicycle to fix its flat tire.
I upended the bucket to use as a stool.
The security inspector upended my bag and dumped everything out.
A giant wave upended the surfers.
The midfielder was upended before he got the ball.
Recent Examples on the Web
More than 30 million people are under winter weather alerts across the Midwest and Northeast early this week with another storm threatening to upend travelers’ plans on what is expected to be one of the busiest travel days this holiday season.
—
Cindy Von Quednow, CNN Money, 28 Dec. 2025
The President’s second term began with a push to transform America’s role in the world by unilaterally upending the existing global trade and security order, halting foreign aid, and ending Washington’s promotion of democracy abroad.
—Ian Bremmer, Time, 28 Dec. 2025
This conservative grumbling soon grew into the Tea Party movement, which upended the Republican establishment.
—W. James Antle Iii, The Washington Examiner, 28 Dec. 2025
Things are looking up for Lucy (Tatyana Ali), who just made partner at her big-time New York law firm — but her life is upended when her sister with special needs, Alice (Brittany Guess), unexpectedly passes away.
—Sophie Dodd, PEOPLE, 27 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for upend
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Cindy Von Quednow, CNN Money, 28 Dec. 2025
The President’s second term began with a push to transform America’s role in the world by unilaterally upending the existing global trade and security order, halting foreign aid, and ending Washington’s promotion of democracy abroad.
—Ian Bremmer, Time, 28 Dec. 2025
This conservative grumbling soon grew into the Tea Party movement, which upended the Republican establishment.
—W. James Antle Iii, The Washington Examiner, 28 Dec. 2025
Things are looking up for Lucy (Tatyana Ali), who just made partner at her big-time New York law firm — but her life is upended when her sister with special needs, Alice (Brittany Guess), unexpectedly passes away.
—Sophie Dodd, PEOPLE, 27 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for upend
Cite this Entry
“Upend.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/upend. Accessed 31 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
upend
verb
up·end
ˌə-ˈpend 
: to set, stand, or rise on end
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