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
The Louisville native grew up in the Smoketown neighborhood and got his first job at the age of 15 at a local location of The Old Spaghetti Factory.
—
Amanda Hancock, The Courier-Journal, 10 May 2024
DeBrincat, 26, grew up in Michigan and later moved to the Chicago area and attended Lake Forest Academy in Lake Forest.
—Bob Goldsborough, Chicago Tribune, 10 May 2024
That series, about a cool teen who faced all the challenges of growing up in suburbia, aired for five seasons, from 1991 to 1994.
—Raechal Shewfelt, EW.com, 10 May 2024
The series is a refreshing comedy mystery about friendship, family and growing up, packed with vibrant characters.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 9 May 2024
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
Amanda Hancock, The Courier-Journal, 10 May 2024
DeBrincat, 26, grew up in Michigan and later moved to the Chicago area and attended Lake Forest Academy in Lake Forest.
—Bob Goldsborough, Chicago Tribune, 10 May 2024
That series, about a cool teen who faced all the challenges of growing up in suburbia, aired for five seasons, from 1991 to 1994.
—Raechal Shewfelt, EW.com, 10 May 2024
The series is a refreshing comedy mystery about friendship, family and growing up, packed with vibrant characters.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 9 May 2024
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
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 14 May. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share