Meaning & use
brought up
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“brought up” is a form of “bring up”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbphrasal verb
Looked after and educated as a child by parents or others, in a particular place or way.
Grammar: Usually passive with was or were: she was brought up by her aunt.
Patterns
- be brought up by someone
- be brought up to do something
- be brought up in somewhere
I was brought up in a small fishing village.
They were brought up to say please and thank you.
He was brought up by his grandparents after his parents moved abroad.
verbphrasal verb
Mentioned a subject so that people discuss it.
Grammar: The object can come between or after: he brought it up, he brought up the budget.
Patterns
- bring something up
- bring something up with someone
She brought up the missing money at the meeting.
I wish you had not brought up politics at dinner.
The issue was brought up again by the new manager.
verbphrasal verbinformal
Vomited food from the stomach.
Grammar: Takes an object, usually food or a meal: he brought up his lunch.
Patterns
- bring something up
The baby brought up her milk on my shoulder.
He felt sick and brought up his breakfast.
The dog brought up some grass after eating too much.
Word forms
| base form | bring up |
|---|---|
| third person singular | brings up |
| past tense | brought up |
| -ing form | bringing up |
Common combinations
- brought up in
- She was brought up in a house full of books.
- brought up to believe
- I was brought up to believe that honesty matters.
- brought up by
- The twins were brought up by their father.
- brought up the subject
- Nobody wanted to be the one who brought up the subject.
- well brought up
- The children were polite and well brought up.
Synonyms and how they differ
- raised
- Raised is the common American word for rearing a child and sounds slightly more neutral than brought up.
- reared
- Reared is more formal and is also used for animals and crops, which brought up is not.
- mentioned
- Mentioned is a simple word for saying something briefly, while brought up suggests starting a discussion.
- raised (a topic)
- Raised is a little more formal when a topic is introduced for debate and fits meetings and reports.
Word family
- upbringing noun
- the way a child is cared for and taught
- bring up verb
- the base phrasal verb
- bringing-up noun
- an older word for child rearing
- well-brought-up adjective
- polite and well behaved because of good rearing
Commonly confused: brought up or brought out? brought up or bought up?
brought up vs brought out
Brought out means produced or revealed something, such as a book or a feeling, not raised a child.
brought up vs bought up
Bought up means purchased all of something, and sounds the same in speech but has a different spelling and meaning.
Practice
'We were brought up on a farm' means that we ___.
Choose one answer.
Was brought up on in the passive describes where someone grew up as a child. The other options use different senses that do not fit this sentence.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “brought up”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.