bring up

verb

brought up; bringing up; brings up

transitive verb

1

: to bring (a person) to maturity through nurturing care and education

2

: to cause to stop suddenly

3

a

: to bring to attention : introduce

b

computers : to cause (something, such as a file or picture) to appear on a computer screen

… you can make any picture that it displays into wallpaper by right-clicking with the arrow over the art to bring up a box with a "Set as wallpaper" choice.

—Barry Popik

4

: vomit

intransitive verb

: to stop suddenly

Synonyms

• breed
• foster
• nourish
• nurse
• raise
• rear

Examples of bring up in a Sentence

it takes an immense commitment and a lot of love to bring up a child properly

I hate to bring this up, but we're running short of money.

Recent Examples on the Web

Beach brings up the Mississippian culture as an example, which makes its debut in Civ 7. —David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Feb. 2025

Noah brought up the code throughout the evening, and many presenters and winners — including Kendrick Lamar — shouted out the perseverance of the area in their speeches. —Erin Strecker, IndieWire, 3 Feb. 2025

The maid of honor even brought up the subject several times in front of the bride's entire family, making for an awkward atmosphere. —Erin Clack, People.com, 3 Feb. 2025

Though the idea of such a U.S. fund has been brought up before, the vehicles are generally used by smaller nations with vast natural resources as well as fiscal surpluses to deploy — unlike the U.S., which has been running massive budget deficits. —Jeff Cox, CNBC, 3 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

bring up

verb

1

: to bring to maturity through care and education

bring up a child

2

: to bring to attention : introduce

I hate to keep bringing this up

Medical Definition

bring up

transitive verb

(ˈ)briŋ-ˈəp 

: vomit