1
: not childish or immature : adult
2
: of, for, or characteristic of adults
insisted on wearing grown-up clothes
Examples of grown-up in a Sentence
Adjective
they have yet to find a grown-up way of handling their marital problems
Noun
once you turn 12, you get to eat with the grown-ups at Thanksgiving
Recent Examples on the Web
Issy Van Der Velde, Rolling Stone, 9 Apr. 2025
In its first season, Andor was cinematic, grown-up, grounded, and urgent, running bold choices or ideas, like deftly examining how oppressive administrations exert their political power.
—Photo: Courtesy Of Netflix., Refinery29, 1 Apr. 2025
Entertainment gossip and news from Newsweek's network of contributors
Jamie Lynn Spears' daughter Maddie is all grown-up — and headed to prom (again)!
—Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2025
Speaking of mothers: Mary Brown (Mortimer) has been pining for the good old days when her now-teenaged children, Judy (Madeleine Harris ) and Jonathan (Samuel Joslin), weren’t so grown-up.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 11 Feb. 2025
The trending assortment of fruity scents are way more complex and grown-up, with far higher concentrations of perfume oil — and therefore longevity.
—Venus Wong, refinery29.com, 31 Jan. 2025
Martin was 10 years old, and Kandee was 13 and seemed so grown-up and glamourous.
—Amanda Lee Myers, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2025
The hotel feels grown-up and staff effusively handle all of your needs with a striking level of gracious humility.
—Lauren Mowery, Forbes, 14 Jan. 2025
The new film sees the characters more mature, and the challenges Noah and Nick face steadily become more grown-up.
—Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 26 Dec. 2024
Clark Collis, EW.com, 16 Feb. 2023
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Adjective
For anyone feeling lost, old, or generally confused as to what the hell’s going on, here’s a grown-up’s guide to all the references and moments in A Minecraft Movie that are driving fans wild.
—Issy Van Der Velde, Rolling Stone, 9 Apr. 2025
In its first season, Andor was cinematic, grown-up, grounded, and urgent, running bold choices or ideas, like deftly examining how oppressive administrations exert their political power.
—Photo: Courtesy Of Netflix., Refinery29, 1 Apr. 2025
Entertainment gossip and news from Newsweek's network of contributors
Jamie Lynn Spears' daughter Maddie is all grown-up — and headed to prom (again)!
—Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2025
Speaking of mothers: Mary Brown (Mortimer) has been pining for the good old days when her now-teenaged children, Judy (Madeleine Harris ) and Jonathan (Samuel Joslin), weren’t so grown-up.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 11 Feb. 2025
The trending assortment of fruity scents are way more complex and grown-up, with far higher concentrations of perfume oil — and therefore longevity.
—Venus Wong, refinery29.com, 31 Jan. 2025
Martin was 10 years old, and Kandee was 13 and seemed so grown-up and glamourous.
—Amanda Lee Myers, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2025
The hotel feels grown-up and staff effusively handle all of your needs with a striking level of gracious humility.
—Lauren Mowery, Forbes, 14 Jan. 2025
The new film sees the characters more mature, and the challenges Noah and Nick face steadily become more grown-up.
—Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 26 Dec. 2024
Noun
Reportedly shot for less than $100,000, this tale of Pooh and Piglet all grown-up and running amok recently opened to box office success in Mexico and is currently playing on cinema screens around America.
—Clark Collis, EW.com, 16 Feb. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Grown-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grown-up. Accessed 3 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share