crop up

verb

cropped up; cropping up; crops up

intransitive verb

: to come or appear when not expected

New problems crop up every day.

His name crops up frequently as a potential candidate.

Examples of crop up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But leakage at the tail service mast umbilical, a problem during the first Artemis flight in 2022, cropped up again the second time around. —William Harwood, CBS News, 3 Feb. 2026

The leaks cropped up early in Monday’s loading operation and again hours later, ultimately halting the countdown clocks at the five-minute mark. —Marcia Dunn, Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 2026

Health and Welfare began tracking measles cases over the summer after several cases cropped up in Idaho’s Panhandle and in Eastern Idaho. —Angela Palermo, Idaho Statesman, 31 Jan. 2026

Although a few surprises cropped up — the Cleveland Cavaliers and Orlando Magic have underperformed deeply, the Boston Celtics are making every predictor and pundit eat their preseason rankings — the Eastern Conference remains a wide-open runway to the playoffs. —Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 30 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Note: See note at crop entry 2

First Known Use

1844, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for crop up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup