grow up

verb

grew up; grown up; growing up; grows up

intransitive verb

1

a

: to grow toward or arrive at full stature or physical or mental maturity : to progress from childhood toward adulthood

growing up intellectually

grew up in the city

also : to become an adult

She wants to be a doctor when she grows up.

b

: to stop thinking or behaving in a childish way

He should grow up and accept his responsibilities.

2

: to begin to exist and develop as time passes

A number of cities grew up along the river.

Synonyms of grow up

• grow
• progress

Examples of grow up in a Sentence

everyone has to grow up at some point in their lives

Recent Examples on the Web

My parents grew up a couple of blocks away and my late dad, Tom Robinson, attended Boy Scouts in the church’s garden-level gymnasium. —Malik Robinson, Denver Post, 7 Dec. 2025

As the daughter of Colombian and Iranian immigrants, Cepee grew up in Houston, Texas, before becoming an immigrant herself in Spain. —Cepee Tabibian, CNBC, 7 Dec. 2025

Stephen Friedman Gallery, D15 UNTITLED Camilo Restrepo grew up in Medellin, Colombia, in the 1980s, during the sinister heyday of drug lord Pablo Escobar, whose personal zoo included vicious hippos. —Jane Wooldridge, Miami Herald, 7 Dec. 2025

Chang grew up in a household where meals were events and opinions were plentiful. —Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 7 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1535, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for grow up

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

Kids Definition

grow up

verb

: to grow toward or reach full mental and physical growth