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

As a girl growing up in the 1970s, Griffin recalls how her parents and other neighbors in the two-street patch of homes did not let their children play at the nearby Fannie Robinson Park after some of them started developing rashes or getting sick. — Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN Money, 26 Sep. 2026

Tess Kala, a South Point resident who grew up in the area, said the back-to-back storms are a shock to locals. — Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 26 Sep. 2026

Employees came and ate regularly at Fresco, and Scotto grew up seeing the company’s name almost every day. — Tatiana Sataua, Fortune, 26 Sep. 2026

Justin Nuttall, a data manager who grew up nearby, was at the coffee-shop meeting. — Parker Henry, New Yorker, 26 Sep. 2026

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