Meaning & use
upstart
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Meanings
nouncountabledisapproving
A person who has gained power, wealth, or influence quickly and is seen as arrogant or insufficiently respectful of older authorities.
Grammar: Countable: an upstart, several upstarts. Often used as an insult in rivalry or politics.
Patterns
- a young upstart
- an upstart rival
- call someone an upstart
The board dismissed the founder as a young upstart with no experience.
Rivals mocked the company as an upstart copying established brands.
He did not enjoy being called an upstart by older executives.
adjectivebefore a noundisapproving
Recently successful and behaving as if older or more powerful people should take the newcomer seriously.
Grammar: Only before a noun: an upstart company. Do not say “the company is upstart” in modern English.
Patterns
- an upstart company
- an upstart politician
- upstart confidence
The upstart brand challenged the market leaders with cheaper phones.
An upstart politician promised to break the old party system.
Their upstart confidence irritated traditional investors.
Word forms
| plural | upstarts |
|---|
Common combinations
- young upstart
- The veteran journalist refused to debate the young upstart.
- upstart company
- The upstart company grew from two employees to two thousand.
- arrogant upstart
- Critics called the founder an arrogant upstart after the takeover bid.
- upstart rival
- The league underestimated its upstart rival.
Synonyms and how they differ
- parvenu
- More formal and old-fashioned; stresses new wealth and social climbing more than rivalry.
- novice
- Neutral about lack of experience; it lacks the critical idea of behaving above one’s status.
- newcomer
- Neutral for someone recently arrived; “upstart” adds disapproval of attitude.
Opposites
Commonly confused: upstart or upstart vs startup?
upstart vs upstart vs startup
An “upstart” is a disapproving word for a person; a “startup” is a new business.
Practice
Which sentence uses upstart as a noun with the usual disapproving tone?
Choose one answer.
“The upstart” names a person seen as presumptuous, matching the noun. “Startup” is a business, while the adjective cannot follow “wore” or “felt” in this way.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “upstart”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.