Meaning & use
onward upward
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Meaning
phrasefixed phraseformal
Moving forward and improving continuously, often used to describe progress in career, life, or an organization.
Grammar: Used as an adverbial phrase, often after verbs like 'move', 'go', or 'continue'. It is not used before a noun.
Patterns
- move onward and upward
- go onward and upward
- continue onward and upward
After her promotion, she felt ready to move onward and upward in her career.
The company's motto is 'Onward and upward' to inspire constant improvement.
Despite the setback, the team continued onward and upward, reaching new goals.
Common combinations
- move onward and upward
- After graduation, he was eager to move onward and upward in his profession.
- go onward and upward
- The business went onward and upward, expanding to three new countries.
- onward and upward from here
- We've had a good year, and it's onward and upward from here.
Synonyms and how they differ
- forward and upward
- Literally similar, but less idiomatic and rarely used as a set phrase.
- progressing
- A general word for moving forward; it doesn't carry the same motivational tone.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: onward upward or onwards and upwards?
onward upward vs onwards and upwards
This is the more common British version with the same meaning; 'onward upward' without 's' is less standard but appears in American usage.
Practice
After a successful year, the company's slogan became '______' to show its ambition.
Choose one answer.
'Onward and upward' is the standard phrase meaning continuous progress. 'Onward and forward' is redundant, 'upward and downward' suggests fluctuation, and 'backward and forward' means moving back and forth, not progress.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “onward upward”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.