1
: toward or at the rear of a theatrical stage
2
: away from a movie or television camera
1
2
: of or relating to the rear of a stage
upstaged; upstaging; upstages
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
: 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
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
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
David Moin, WWD, 1 Nov. 2024
With the iPhone range rumored to be getting an under-display Face ID camera no sooner than 2026, Google could upstage Apple’s finest with a notchless facial biometrics system that works as well as the current iPhone implementation.
—Davey Winder, Forbes, 28 Oct. 2024
Legal Entertainment, Forbes, 14 Oct. 2024
Special mention to the stage designer, who transformed the upstage screen into an A.I. road trip.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for upstage 
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illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of
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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
Santa never gets upstaged at the 2024 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, but he’s got some strong competition this year.
—David Moin, WWD, 1 Nov. 2024
With the iPhone range rumored to be getting an under-display Face ID camera no sooner than 2026, Google could upstage Apple’s finest with a notchless facial biometrics system that works as well as the current iPhone implementation.
—Davey Winder, Forbes, 28 Oct. 2024
Noun
The sound room is upstage and completely soundproofed.
—Legal Entertainment, Forbes, 14 Oct. 2024
Special mention to the stage designer, who transformed the upstage screen into an A.I. road trip.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for upstage
Articles Related to upstage
Dictionary Entries Near upstage
Cite this Entry
“Upstage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/upstage. Accessed 16 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids 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
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