1
as in defeating
to achieve a victory over
the team won the division play-offs, but was upended in the final championship game
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in erecting
to fix in an upright position
we had to upend the sofa in order to fit it into the elevator
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of upending
Witherspoon has long been talking about artificial intelligence and encouraging her followers to become familiar with the technology, which is rapidly upending industries from Hollywood to tech.
—
Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 21 Apr. 2026
Later bookings, more domestic travel The Iran war has sent jet fuel prices soaring, upending the global aviation industry and forcing airlines to raise fares, curb growth plans and rethink forecasts.
—Shashwat Awasthi, USA Today, 16 Apr. 2026
But the war that’s threatening global energy supplies, upending geopolitics, fomenting a food crisis and likely to curb global growth long after any ceasefire is the Iran war.
—Diane Brady, Fortune, 14 Apr. 2026
That flow has since slowed to a trickle, upending supply chains for oil, fertilizers, apparel and industrial goods.
—Anniek Bao, CNBC, 13 Apr. 2026
Two months later, Lamont defeated Lieberman in the primary, signaling to the world that opposition to the Bush administration’s war in Iraq was upending politics.
—Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 11 Apr. 2026
Rising fuel costs are upending travel and logistics, while tight supplies of other materials from the Middle East, such as fertilizer and helium, could lead to more expensive food and electronics.
—Stephanie Yang, CNN Money, 4 Apr. 2026
And upending the global supply chain has proven costly for businesses and households that are already strained by rising prices.
—ABC News, 2 Apr. 2026
Indiana beating the Miami Heat and Toronto upending Orlando means the Hornets remain in 10th place in the conference.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 30 Mar. 2026
Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 21 Apr. 2026
Later bookings, more domestic travel The Iran war has sent jet fuel prices soaring, upending the global aviation industry and forcing airlines to raise fares, curb growth plans and rethink forecasts.
—Shashwat Awasthi, USA Today, 16 Apr. 2026
But the war that’s threatening global energy supplies, upending geopolitics, fomenting a food crisis and likely to curb global growth long after any ceasefire is the Iran war.
—Diane Brady, Fortune, 14 Apr. 2026
That flow has since slowed to a trickle, upending supply chains for oil, fertilizers, apparel and industrial goods.
—Anniek Bao, CNBC, 13 Apr. 2026
Two months later, Lamont defeated Lieberman in the primary, signaling to the world that opposition to the Bush administration’s war in Iraq was upending politics.
—Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 11 Apr. 2026
Rising fuel costs are upending travel and logistics, while tight supplies of other materials from the Middle East, such as fertilizer and helium, could lead to more expensive food and electronics.
—Stephanie Yang, CNN Money, 4 Apr. 2026
And upending the global supply chain has proven costly for businesses and households that are already strained by rising prices.
—ABC News, 2 Apr. 2026
Indiana beating the Miami Heat and Toronto upending Orlando means the Hornets remain in 10th place in the conference.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 30 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for upending
Verb
-
Ben Shelton bounced back from disappointment last year by defeating Flavio Cobolli 6-2, 7-5 to win the Munich Open on Sunday.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
19 Apr. 2026
-
Cargill won the title at Saturday Night’s Main Event in November, defeating Tiffany Stratton.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Today’s battle may be over erecting a stop sign.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
22 Apr. 2026
-
In a rare break from federally suspect gambling promotion, Drake has announced his return to music by erecting a giant ice sculpture in a Toronto car park.—
Jazz Monroe,
Pitchfork,
21 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Finally, in overcoming this vexing moment, the two would establish a painterly repartee that altered the trajectory of their own work and, by extension, modern art.—
Susan Tallman,
The New York Review of Books,
25 Apr. 2026
-
But overcoming perceptions that lithium-ion battery technology is inherently dangerous has proven challenging, and developers sometimes fuel mistrust by dismissing residents’ concerns about fire, toxic threats and the industrialization of natural landscapes.—
Bloomberg,
Oc Register,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The incident was captured on camera by a freelance news videographer and appeared to show Evans acting calm and raising his hands in the air when an officer fired a bean bag round that struck him in the stomach, dropping him to the ground.—
Alex Riggins,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
24 Apr. 2026
-
While much of the world’s economy has shown resilience in the face of the worst disruption to energy supplies in modern times, the knock-on effects of the conflict are starting to push up inflation while raising alarm bells about food supplies and prompting downgrades to economic growth.—
Sean Nevin,
NBC news,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Outside of entertainment, mastering these issues will greatly improve humanoid robot utility in things like search and rescue, military use, industrial use, and logistics.—
Christopher McFadden,
Interesting Engineering,
19 Apr. 2026
-
The online apparel retailer has become a $10 billion-plus e-commerce giant by mastering the art of the supply chain.—
Amanda Mull,
Bloomberg,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Other officers in the area saw the two men in a struggle and assisted in taking Mullins into custody, according to police.—
Staff Report,
Hartford Courant,
22 Apr. 2026
-
Let’s imagine—in a case of truly terrible architectural planning—that there is only one extremely slow elevator, stopping at each floor and taking one minute per floor.—
Manon Bischoff,
Scientific American,
21 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
On the throw home, Williams advanced to second, beating a tag, and Brown raced home from third to score the third run.—
Matt Le Cren,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Apr. 2026
-
Deni Avdija had 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for the Blazers, who advanced to the playoffs for the first time since 2021 by beating the Phoenix Suns in the Play-In Tournament.—
Christian Clark,
New York Times,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Erling Haaland was the rightful match-winner, dispatching his goal with a surety that eluded Havertz on more than one occasion.—
James McNicholas,
New York Times,
20 Apr. 2026
-
However, the confident Vodnik is not shy about sharing his game plan on dispatching Ohtani.—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
17 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Upending.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/upending. Accessed 27 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
