grow up
verb
grew up; grown up; growing up; grows up
1
a
: to grow toward or arrive at full stature or physical or mental maturity : to progress from childhood toward adulthood
growing up intellectually
grew up in the city
also
: to become an adult
She wants to be a doctor when she grows up.
b
: to stop thinking or behaving in a childish way
He should grow up and accept his responsibilities.
2
: to begin to exist and develop as time passes
A number of cities grew up along the river.
Examples of grow up in a Sentence
everyone has to grow up at some point in their lives
Recent Examples on the Web
The trailer shows Williams’ early life growing up and playing soccer, where he’s shown as a monkey wearing clothes.
—
Jordan Moreau, Variety, 2 Oct. 2024
The series will follow Lee’s childhood in New Zealand, growing up the son of a heroin-dealing father and his rise to becoming a skating pro in the late 1980s, often skating barefoot.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Oct. 2024
The child of Taiwanese immigrants, Yeh grew up in Tucson without any idea of the impact of the Chinese community on the development of the city.
—Reia Li, The Arizona Republic, 2 Oct. 2024
Ismail, who grew up between Tunisia and France, has since been seen in Piero Messina’s sci-fi drama Another End, in support of co-stars Gael García Bernal and Renate Reinsve, with previous credits including series The Power.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 1 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for grow up 
Jordan Moreau, Variety, 2 Oct. 2024
The series will follow Lee’s childhood in New Zealand, growing up the son of a heroin-dealing father and his rise to becoming a skating pro in the late 1980s, often skating barefoot.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Oct. 2024
The child of Taiwanese immigrants, Yeh grew up in Tucson without any idea of the impact of the Chinese community on the development of the city.
—Reia Li, The Arizona Republic, 2 Oct. 2024
Ismail, who grew up between Tunisia and France, has since been seen in Piero Messina’s sci-fi drama Another End, in support of co-stars Gael García Bernal and Renate Reinsve, with previous credits including series The Power.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 1 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for grow up
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'grow up.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near grow up
Cite this Entry
“Grow up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grow%20up. Accessed 5 Oct. 2024.
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