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

The group, mainly millennials and young Gen Xers, grew up in the internet era and recognize how technology can switch up the status quo. —Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 9 Nov. 2025

Back in the day, fresh herbs weren’t as widely available in stores, so dried is what a lot of us grew up with. —Josh Miller, Southern Living, 9 Nov. 2025

Kukla lives in Belgrade, Serbia, but grew up in Slovenia, and her parents came from North Macedonia. —Leo Barraclough, Variety, 9 Nov. 2025

Born on May 27, 1997, to parents Becca and Steve Jones, the football star grew up as one of four children. —Audrey Schmidt, PEOPLE, 9 Nov. 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