end up

verb

ended up; ending up; ends up

: to reach or come to a place, condition, or situation that was not planned or expected

The book ended up in the trash.

He didn't want to end up like his father.

She ended up a rich woman.

He ended up (living) in a nursing home.

The movie we wanted to see was sold out so we ended up seeing a different one.

Examples of end up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Whatever ends up coming for Alpha, with their TV fragmented into a billion tiny screens, it’s bound to be bizarre. — Sasha Geffen, Pitchfork, 2 Aug. 2026

But the most extraordinary thing on the screen is Antonio Banderas, who delivers an astonishing, devastating performance as the proprietor of the restaurant where Bourdain finds work, and on whose porch Tony ends up sleeping for the summer. — Helen Rosner, New Yorker, 2 Aug. 2026

The movie’s viewership ended up skewing young and male, as 36 percent of the audience fell between ages 18 and 24, while 61 percent of the crowd were men. — Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 2 Aug. 2026

A lot of local people could see him in their son, or boyfriend, or high school buddy who had ended up on the wrong path. — Guthrie Scrimgeour, Rolling Stone, 2 Aug. 2026

Rhymes for end up

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