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up·right | \ ˈəp-ˌrīt 
\
\Definition of upright
(Entry 1 of 3)
1a : perpendicular, vertical
b : erect in carriage or posture
c : having the main axis or a main part perpendicular
upright freezer
2 : marked by strong moral rectitude
an upright citizen
upright
adverbDefinition of upright (Entry 2 of 3)
: vertically upward : in an upright position
upright
nounDefinition of upright (Entry 3 of 3)
1 : the state of being upright : perpendicular a pillar out of upright
2 : something that stands upright especially : a football goalpost —usually used in plural
3 : upright piano
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Synonyms & Antonyms for upright
Synonyms: Adjective
- all right,
- decent,
- ethical,
- good,
- honest,
- honorable,
- just,
- moral,
- nice,
- right,
- right-minded,
- righteous,
- straight,
- true,
- virtuous
Antonyms: Adjective
- bad,
- black,
- dishonest,
- dishonorable,
- evil,
- evil-minded,
- immoral,
- indecent,
- sinful,
- unethical,
- unrighteous,
- wicked,
- wrong
Examples of upright in a Sentence
Adjective
Put your seat back in the upright position.
The container should be kept upright to prevent leaks. Noun
The uprights of the structure were embedded in concrete.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective One aircraft was upside down in a grassy area off a runway, and the second aircraft was upright, farther down the runway.
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Staff Reports, USA TODAY, "Two pilots killed in training jet 'mishap' at Air Force Base in Oklahoma," 21 Nov. 2019 The football hit the left upright, fell to the crossbar and bounced back into the end zone, enshrining the kick in Chicago sports infamy as the Double Doink.
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Mark Inabinett | Minabinett@al.com, al, "Tennessee Titans release kicker Cody Parkey," 2 Nov. 2019 In this case, Patchell was the tackler and tackled upright, and Kerevi’s forearm slid from Patchell’s chest up to his neck as Patchell was knocked back and Kerevi surged on.
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San Diego Union-Tribune, "Kerevi disappointed to cost team points for legit charge," 29 Sep. 2019 The distant beds find another organizing grass, two varieties of the little bluestem, upright, dark and destined to become more handsome by October.
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Washington Post, "How a soybean field in middle-of-nowhere Delaware became a buzzy botanic garden," 23 Sep. 2019 That’s my goal in life: a nice four-wheel upright Tumi.
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Nell Mcshane Wulfhart, New York Times, "What Roy Wood Jr. Can’t Travel Without," 22 June 2018 Instead, if a passenger's seat is not in the fully upright position or they aren't buckled in, flight attendants will get a notification on their tablets showing which seat needs to be stowed or seatbelt needs to be buckled.
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Jessica Puckett, Condé Nast Traveler, "New Airbus Planes Will Track Your Every Move Through the Cabin," 13 Sep. 2019 The goal is to be as upright as possible, that's what mapping the ground below is good for.
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Jennifer Leman, Popular Mechanics, "Why Is It So Damn Hard to Land on the Moon?," 10 Sep. 2019 Cleveland Water crews were notified of the earlier report, when the manhole cover was upright in the roadway.
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Thomas Jewell, cleveland.com, "Pool hopping still a thing: Hunting Valley Police Blotter," 5 July 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb The woman was buried upright, seated cross-legged on a bed of antlers.
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Kristin Romey, National Geographic, "Exclusive: This 7,000-year-old woman was among Sweden's last hunter-gatherers," 11 Nov. 2019 At a solemn gathering to honor military personnel on April 25, 2014, two of Matthew’s friends had to hold him upright.
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Washington Post, "Opioid crisis goes global as deaths surge in Australia," 5 Sep. 2019 Across from Cámara, Koslow responded by sitting upright in her chair, blinking purposively, and speaking to the table in the soft, calming tones of a second grade school teacher.
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David Tamarkin, Bon Appétit, "Running a Restaurant Is Hard, Chef Partnerships Are Even Harder. Can Onda Get It Right?," 29 Oct. 2019 The deputy asked Wentworth to exit his vehicle in order to conduct a field sobriety test, and Wentworth allegedly had great difficulty walking or holding himself upright without leaning on a vehicle, according to charging documents.
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Jon Kelvey, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, "Westminster man charged with assaulting police officer after traffic stop," 23 Oct. 2019 Rails that once held the boats upright are still preserved along the floor in the building today.
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oregonlive, "The longest pier in Oregon leads to Garibaldi’s historic Coast Guard boathouse," 7 Oct. 2019 Cut each cob in half, then stand each half upright and cut off the kernels.
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Joe Yonan, The Denver Post, "For lazy summer days, this corn, tomato and tortilla-chip salad does all the work for you," 15 July 2019 Cut each cob in half, then stand each half upright and cut off the kernels.
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Joe Yonan, The Denver Post, "For lazy summer days, this corn, tomato and tortilla-chip salad does all the work for you," 15 July 2019 Cut each cob in half, then stand each half upright and cut off the kernels.
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Joe Yonan, The Denver Post, "For lazy summer days, this corn, tomato and tortilla-chip salad does all the work for you," 15 July 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Nehl comes on and puts the game-winning kick through the uprights — his only make in four tries — and OSU wins 10-7.
1970: OSU 24, UO 9.
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oregonlive, "Civil War football history: The Oregon Ducks and Oregon State Beavers’ 122 meetings, game by game," 25 Nov. 2019 Greg Joseph was 7-of-7 on field goals, although his first kick – in Week 3 against the Jets – seemed to be helped through the uprights by that swirling Dawg Pound wind.
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Scott Patsko, cleveland, "Why is the Dawg Pound suddenly a curse for kickers at FirstEnergy Stadium?," 21 Nov. 2019 Babies who once had difficulty moving now able to sit upright on their own.
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Stephen J. Ubl, STAT, "Pelosi’s drug pricing plan puts medical innovation at risk," 17 Oct. 2019 Nine of the 30 kickers given at least 10 field goal attempts have had a harder time putting the ball through the uprights this season than Vinatieri.
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Tyler Kraft, Indianapolis Star, "Here's what we know about Adam Vinatieri's status with the Colts," 12 Nov. 2019 After a good snap and a good hold, Londell split the uprights to send the visiting sideline into a frenzy.
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Al.com Reports, al, "Birmingham HS roundup: Gardendale, Briarwood, Mortimer Jordan earn playoff wins," 9 Nov. 2019 Harrison Butker watched his 44-yard field goal split the uprights, the clocks inside Arrowhead Stadium reading zero, and the Chiefs kicker turned and sprinted the other way in celebration.
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Dave Skretta, chicagotribune.com, "A 44-yard field goal pushes the Chiefs past the Vikings 26-23," 3 Nov. 2019 Wisconsin evaporated Saturday as Illinois kicker James McCourt’s 39-yard field goal split the uprights in Champaign, Illinois, as time expired.
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Nathan Baird, cleveland, "What Wisconsin football’s 24-23 loss at Illinois means for Ohio State: Buckeye Take," 19 Oct. 2019 Jeremy Taras, Utica Ford: Split the uprights on four field goals in the loss vs. Warren Mott.
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Chris Allen And Joey Yashinsky, Detroit Free Press, "Michigan high school football: Here's who starred in Week 8," 19 Oct. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'upright.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for upright
upright
adjectiveEnglish Language Learners Definition of upright
(Entry 1 of 2)
: positioned to be straight up
—used to describe something that is tall rather than wide
: always behaving in an honest way : having high moral standards
upright
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of upright (Entry 2 of 2)
: a board or pole placed in a vertical position to support something
See the full definition for upright in the English Language Learners Dictionary
upright
adjectiveup·right | \ ˈəp-ˌrīt \
\Kids Definition of upright
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : vertical entry 1 an upright post
2 : straight in posture
3 : having or showing high moral standards
upright
adverbKids Definition of upright (Entry 2 of 2)
: in or into a vertical position
… careful to keep it upright, he held a wooden object above their heads.— Mary Norton, The Borrowers
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Time Traveler for upright
The first known use of upright was before the 12th century
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