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
Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 24 Sep. 2024
Fifteen of the original eighteen songs feature guest singers, and Post is a solicitous host, happy to be upstaged.
—Kelefa Sanneh, The New Yorker, 21 Aug. 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 
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
New mobile fueling unit helping power the future for consumers going green 01:48
China has upstaged the U.S. not just in terms of quantity, but also in terms of quality.
—Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 24 Sep. 2024
Fifteen of the original eighteen songs feature guest singers, and Post is a solicitous host, happy to be upstaged.
—Kelefa Sanneh, The New Yorker, 21 Aug. 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
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'upstage.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Upstage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/upstage. Accessed 5 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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