upstage

1 of 4

adverb

up·​stage ˈəp-ˈstāj 

1

: toward or at the rear of a theatrical stage

2

: away from a movie or television camera

upstage

2 of 4

adjective

up·​stage ˈəp-ˈstāj 

1

[upstage entry 3] : haughty

2

: of or relating to the rear of a stage

upstage

3 of 4

verb

up·​stage ˌəp-ˈstāj 

upstaged; upstaging; upstages

transitive verb

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

upstage

4 of 4

noun

up·​stage ˈəp-ˌstāj 

: 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

Adverb

Eric walked up to Perry, upstage, in the dark, behind Dan, put Perry in a headlock and punched him in the stomach three times. —Chris Willman, Variety, 16 Sep. 2024

Anne Egerman stood upstage, flitting through Stephen Sondheim’s lyrics in her lilting soprano. —Lila Battis, Travel + Leisure, 2 Aug. 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

Cole Palmer did Cole Palmer things with one sumptuous goal and three assists and yet he was still upstaged by Noni Madueke, who blitzed a 14-minute second-half hat-trick. —Tim Spiers, The Athletic, 26 Aug. 2024

Vance’s nomination acceptance speech failed to rouse the convention, although some said the lack of applause lines might have been a deliberate effort to avoid upstaging Trump. —Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 21 July 2024

Noun

Expectations were immediately exceeded as the concert paid homage to the production’s iconic orchestra pit reveal, with the theater’s upstage wall opening to expose its musicians. —Juan A. Ramírez, Vogue, 10 Dec. 2024

The sound room is upstage and completely soundproofed. —Legal Entertainment, Forbes, 14 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Adverb

1870, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1918, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1921, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

circa 1931, in the meaning defined above

Kids 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