1
: toward or at the rear of a theatrical stage
2
: away from a motion-picture or television camera
1
2
: of or relating to the rear of a stage
upstaged; upstaging; upstages
1
: to draw attention away from
upstaging the competition
2
: to force (an actor) to face away from the audience by staying upstage
3
: to treat snobbishly
: the part of a stage that is farthest from the audience or camera
Examples of upstage in a Sentence
Verb
We don't want the flower girl upstaging the bride.
My apple pie was upstaged by her chocolate cake.
Recent Examples on the Web
Lila Battis, Travel + Leisure, 2 Aug. 2023
Will Dyanne upstage, or even replace, Jocelyn? Dan Levy is Jocelyn’s publicist Photo: Eddy Chen In a clip shared by Tesfaye, Levy’s character is seen trying to talk Jocelyn into doing a cover feature in Rolling Stone.
—Jasmine Li, Vulture, 31 May 2023
Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Nov. 2022
Colón concludes the piece on her own, upstage; like the music, her movement stops rather than ends.
—Jeffrey Gantz, BostonGlobe.com, 22 Oct. 2022
Helene Gayle, Foreign Affairs, 19 Mar. 2021
Summerfest 2024's biggest headliner might have been upstaged twice Saturday night: first, by a monster storm that delayed her performance by more than an hour and then by reported sightings of an even bigger star.
—Chris Foran, Journal Sentinel, 22 June 2024
Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 3 July 2024
For much of the three-hour show, the band members are sequestered with their instruments in the soundproof, fishbowl-like live room upstage.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 18 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for upstage 
Adverb
Anne Egerman stood upstage, flitting through Stephen Sondheim’s lyrics in her lilting soprano.
—Lila Battis, Travel + Leisure, 2 Aug. 2023
Will Dyanne upstage, or even replace, Jocelyn? Dan Levy is Jocelyn’s publicist Photo: Eddy Chen In a clip shared by Tesfaye, Levy’s character is seen trying to talk Jocelyn into doing a cover feature in Rolling Stone.
—Jasmine Li, Vulture, 31 May 2023
Adjective
Ngin strides rapidly upstage and forcefully tears down a set of hanging white curtains.
—Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Nov. 2022
Colón concludes the piece on her own, upstage; like the music, her movement stops rather than ends.
—Jeffrey Gantz, BostonGlobe.com, 22 Oct. 2022
Verb
In tackling the worst global crisis of a lifetime, the United States has so far been upstaged.
—Helene Gayle, Foreign Affairs, 19 Mar. 2021
Summerfest 2024's biggest headliner might have been upstaged twice Saturday night: first, by a monster storm that delayed her performance by more than an hour and then by reported sightings of an even bigger star.
—Chris Foran, Journal Sentinel, 22 June 2024
Noun
At one point during his cameo in London, Travis picked the 14-time Grammy winner up and carried her over to a couch waiting upstage.
—Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 3 July 2024
For much of the three-hour show, the band members are sequestered with their instruments in the soundproof, fishbowl-like live room upstage.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 18 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for upstage
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'upstage.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Upstage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/upstage. Accessed 26 Jul. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
upstage
1 of 2 adverb or adjective
up·stage
ˈəp-ˈstāj 
: toward or at the part of the stage or set farthest from the audience or the motion-picture or television camera
upstage
2 of 2 verb
up·stage
ˌəp-ˈstāj
: to steal attention away from
children upstaging adult performers
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