1
as in defeated
to achieve a victory over
the team won the division play-offs, but was upended in the final championship game
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in erected
to fix in an upright position
we had to upend the sofa in order to fit it into the elevator
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of upended
Sean Mandell, People.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Boeing’s Max storage inventory grew in 2020, when the COVID pandemic upended air travel and airlines canceled deliveries amid the financial crunch.
—Lauren Rosenblatt, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2025
Some 2 million school-age children have had their education upended.
—Irwin Redlener, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Aug. 2025
The strike upended travel plans worldwide at the height of the summer season.
—Matt Lavietes, NBC news, 16 Aug. 2025
This operation would be completely upended with the new tariff regime.
—Juan Londoño, Baltimore Sun, 10 Aug. 2025
One design is a turbine that eschews the pinwheel-like blades of a traditional windmill; instead it is shaped like an upended eggbeater, with both ends of each curved blade attached to a central pole.
—You Xiaoying, Scientific American, 7 Aug. 2025
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
The show, which counts Cedric the Entertainer among its executive producers, centers on Morgan’s character, a Harlem shop owner whose life is upended when his adult kids (Jermaine Fowler and Adrianna Mitchell) move back in with him.
—Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2025
India’s relations with the US had mostly been improving in recent decades, but the White House’s imposition of hefty tariffs have upended that progress, and New Delhi has looked to expand relationships with other powers while lowering tensions with rivals such as Beijing.
—semafor.com, 1 Sep. 2025
An upstairs front window — believed to be the room where Westman stayed — was opened as neighbors recalled how their normally quiet street was upended Wednesday, when police swarmed the property hours after the deadly attack that left two children dead and 18 others injured.
—Michael Dorgan, FOXNews.com, 31 Aug. 2025
This is his story I t was a round of poker, fittingly, that upended Mathew Bowyer’s life in spectacular fashion.
—David Amsden, Rolling Stone, 29 Aug. 2025
Similarly, in astronomy, larger apertures, advances in photography and spectroscopy, the development of multi-wavelength astronomy beyond the visible light spectrum, and the first space telescopes all brought in new observational data that upended many pre-existing ideas.
—Ethan Siegel, Big Think, 28 Aug. 2025
Tens of millions of lives have been upended from derelict disaster response, power outages, inhumane commute times, and the housing shortage.
—Ryan Craig, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Filmed on 16mm Kodak Ektachrome across a non-stop 45 day shoot, Petersen expands her exploration of mysticism and disappearance in southernmost Argentina – plunging head-first into a father-daughter relationship upended in the sleepy mountains of Tierra del Fuego.
—Jason Liwag, Variety, 14 Aug. 2025
Verb
Adapted by Tina Fey, Tracey Wigfield, and Lang Fisher from the 1981 Alan Alda film of the same name, The Four Seasons follows a long-time friend group made up of three couples that’s upended when one of the couples breaks up.
—Sean Mandell, People.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Boeing’s Max storage inventory grew in 2020, when the COVID pandemic upended air travel and airlines canceled deliveries amid the financial crunch.
—Lauren Rosenblatt, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2025
Some 2 million school-age children have had their education upended.
—Irwin Redlener, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Aug. 2025
The strike upended travel plans worldwide at the height of the summer season.
—Matt Lavietes, NBC news, 16 Aug. 2025
This operation would be completely upended with the new tariff regime.
—Juan Londoño, Baltimore Sun, 10 Aug. 2025
One design is a turbine that eschews the pinwheel-like blades of a traditional windmill; instead it is shaped like an upended eggbeater, with both ends of each curved blade attached to a central pole.
—You Xiaoying, Scientific American, 7 Aug. 2025
Adjective
Ben Lewis Doherty, playing a boy named Sam whose life is upended by Robbie, is the show’s greatest innocent, a softhearted moppet who warns deer to be careful when crossing the street.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
The show, which counts Cedric the Entertainer among its executive producers, centers on Morgan’s character, a Harlem shop owner whose life is upended when his adult kids (Jermaine Fowler and Adrianna Mitchell) move back in with him.
—Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2025
India’s relations with the US had mostly been improving in recent decades, but the White House’s imposition of hefty tariffs have upended that progress, and New Delhi has looked to expand relationships with other powers while lowering tensions with rivals such as Beijing.
—semafor.com, 1 Sep. 2025
An upstairs front window — believed to be the room where Westman stayed — was opened as neighbors recalled how their normally quiet street was upended Wednesday, when police swarmed the property hours after the deadly attack that left two children dead and 18 others injured.
—Michael Dorgan, FOXNews.com, 31 Aug. 2025
This is his story I t was a round of poker, fittingly, that upended Mathew Bowyer’s life in spectacular fashion.
—David Amsden, Rolling Stone, 29 Aug. 2025
Similarly, in astronomy, larger apertures, advances in photography and spectroscopy, the development of multi-wavelength astronomy beyond the visible light spectrum, and the first space telescopes all brought in new observational data that upended many pre-existing ideas.
—Ethan Siegel, Big Think, 28 Aug. 2025
Tens of millions of lives have been upended from derelict disaster response, power outages, inhumane commute times, and the housing shortage.
—Ryan Craig, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Filmed on 16mm Kodak Ektachrome across a non-stop 45 day shoot, Petersen expands her exploration of mysticism and disappearance in southernmost Argentina – plunging head-first into a father-daughter relationship upended in the sleepy mountains of Tierra del Fuego.
—Jason Liwag, Variety, 14 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for upended
Verb
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And after Detroit defeated Green Bay, 34-31, in Week 14 last season, many Packers talked about wanting to see the Lions again in the postseason.—
Rob Reischel,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
-
The team defeated the 49ers, 20-3, in front of a record-setting crowd.—
Kelsie Gibson,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Ahead of its release, Justin also shared images and videos on Instagram featuring billboards with the pink album cover in cities such as London and Paris, along with a clip of a series of billboards being erected outside Whisky a Go Go in West Hollywood, Los Angeles.—
Ilana Kaplan,
PEOPLE,
5 Sep. 2025
-
In 2004, Chicago officials proclaimed the corner of Foster and Kedzie avenues in the North Park neighborhood as Kun Chae Bae Way, but Bae declined to allow the sign to be erected.—
Bob Goldsborough,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The dust of Ogunleye, the crooked end of the street, the large canal by my uncle’s shop, the small stream of water that flowed behind our house into the large canal at the other end of the street, the foul smell that overcame the street the first time, the getting used to, the boys.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Sep. 2025
-
Carlos Alcaraz and Emma Raducanu were among the A-list Plastics, but Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori’s true partnership overcame the glamorous singles invaders.—
Tim Ellis,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The decision upheld a previous denial by the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission over traffic concerns raised by city officials and in more than 300 public comments.—
Rose Evans
September 10,
Idaho Statesman,
10 Sep. 2025
-
After new state data showed substantial academic gains, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education members defended a six-figure consulting contract Tuesday that raised questions earlier this year about family connections to the district.—
Rebecca Noel,
Charlotte Observer,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Once mastered, financial literacy is a powerful tool for business growth.—
Melissa Houston,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Hunter mastered both ends of the field in college, but the National Football League is a different beast.—
Ryan Morik,
FOXNews.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The country’s Home Affairs Minister resigned, and the government lifted the social-media ban the day after.—
Chad de Guzman,
Time,
9 Sep. 2025
-
The mass protests started in response to the ban—which was lifted on Tuesday, September 9—but have since broadened into an expression of dissatisfaction with the country's political leadership and alleged corruption.—
Robert Birsel
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Coming in second overall was The Traitors, the reality competition series on Peacock, which took home four awards, including Alan Cumming for Best Reality Host.—
Marc Berman,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Two key points in the case were that board members who personally opposed the books took the action against the input of an advisory committee, and that the board members' action was based on speculative, not actual, fears of disruption.—
Taylor Seely,
AZCentral.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Between them, Sinner and Alcaraz have dispatched their only serious rival in three straight majors, largely making every other match at these tournaments feel almost immaterial.—
Charlie Eccleshare,
New York Times,
6 Sep. 2025
-
The South Korean government launched an emergency response team on Friday, with consulate officials dispatched to the site of the raid.—
Rebecca Schneid,
Time,
6 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Upended.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/upended. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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