grow up
verb
grew up; grown up; growing up; grows up
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.
Examples of grow up in a Sentence
everyone has to grow up at some point in their lives
Recent Examples on the Web
Shopping for the latter at a local railroad store, the Orange County native who grew up within walking distance to Disneyland was suddenly hooked by the model railroad industry.
—
Todd Martens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Apr. 2024
The ones who grow up to be champion show dogs are then bred with other champion show dogs to produce, naturally, even more champion show dogs.
—Tommy Tomlinson, TIME, 26 Apr. 2024
My dad did have a garage growing up, so that’s kind of familiar to me.
—Alex Ritman, Variety, 26 Apr. 2024
The college student, however, had to have a chat with her dad about using her in his material now that she’s grown up.
—Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 26 Apr. 2024
While Swift's lyric appears to be a reference to growing up in the music industry, fans have shared the lyric to joke about tough moments, ranging from buying concert tickets to recalling awkward moments on TV shows.
—USA TODAY, 25 Apr. 2024
Nicole grew up in Idaho, graduated from Idaho State University and Northwestern University with a master’s degree in journalism.
—Nicole Blanchard, Idaho Statesman, 25 Apr. 2024
Trump grew up in the borough's Jamaica Estates neighborhood before attending the New York Military Academy then entering Fordham University for his undergraduate degree.
—Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 15 Apr. 2024
Sky Johnson grew up in the tiny O’odham village of Comobabi, in the foothills a few miles from Tohono O’odham.
—Matt Krupnick, The Arizona Republic, 14 Apr. 2024
Todd Martens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Apr. 2024
The ones who grow up to be champion show dogs are then bred with other champion show dogs to produce, naturally, even more champion show dogs.
—Tommy Tomlinson, TIME, 26 Apr. 2024
My dad did have a garage growing up, so that’s kind of familiar to me.
—Alex Ritman, Variety, 26 Apr. 2024
The college student, however, had to have a chat with her dad about using her in his material now that she’s grown up.
—Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 26 Apr. 2024
While Swift's lyric appears to be a reference to growing up in the music industry, fans have shared the lyric to joke about tough moments, ranging from buying concert tickets to recalling awkward moments on TV shows.
—USA TODAY, 25 Apr. 2024
Nicole grew up in Idaho, graduated from Idaho State University and Northwestern University with a master’s degree in journalism.
—Nicole Blanchard, Idaho Statesman, 25 Apr. 2024
Trump grew up in the borough's Jamaica Estates neighborhood before attending the New York Military Academy then entering Fordham University for his undergraduate degree.
—Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 15 Apr. 2024
Sky Johnson grew up in the tiny O’odham village of Comobabi, in the foothills a few miles from Tohono O’odham.
—Matt Krupnick, The Arizona Republic, 14 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'grow up.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near grow up
Cite this Entry
“Grow up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grow%20up. Accessed 30 Apr. 2024.
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