up to

1 of 2

preposition

1

—used as a function word to indicate extension as far as a specified place

sank up to his knees in the mud

2

—used as a function word to indicate a limit or boundary

up to 50,000 copies a month

worked up to the last minute

up to

2 of 2

phrase

1

: capable of performing or dealing with

feels up to the task

2

: engaged in

what is he up to

3

: being the responsibility of

it's up to me

Examples of up to in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Preposition

Vicki and Tamra are meeting up to get their Prenuvo scans, and no, this is definitely not spon-con. — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026

Flohr, with a fleet of almost 200 planes and an order for up to 160 new Bombardier jets over the next decade, doesn’t see any turbulence on the horizon. — Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2026

With her appointment of a special prosecutor, Hochul believes Van Houten is not up to the task. — David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 2 Oct. 2026

Each Elytra vehicle is designed to remain in lunar orbit for up to five years, enabling more rapid revisit times of the lunar surface for government and commercial customers, as per the release. — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 1 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Preposition

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for up to

• accrue
• ado
• ainu
• aircrew
• airscrew
• anew
• askew
• baboo
• babu
• bamboo
• beaucoup
• bijou

Kids Definition

up to

preposition

1

: as far as a named part or place

sank up to my hips

2

: in accordance with

the game was not up to our standards

3

a

: to the limit of

come in sizes up to 10

b

: as many or as much as

carry up to 10 tons

4

: until entry 1, till

from dawn up to dusk