Meaning & use
upwards and onwards
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Meaning
phrasefixed phraseinformal
Said to encourage moving forward and improving, especially after a setback or at the start of something new.
Grammar: Often stands alone as an exclamation: well, upwards and onwards!
Patterns
- upwards and onwards!
We lost the first round, but it is upwards and onwards from here.
The project is finished, so upwards and onwards to the next challenge.
Right then, upwards and onwards, everyone!
Common combinations
- upwards and onwards, then
- Upwards and onwards, then, we have a lot to do.
- it's upwards and onwards
- After the exam, it's upwards and onwards for all of us.
- onto upwards and onwards
- He ended the speech with a cheerful 'upwards and onwards'.
- upwards and onwards to something
- It is upwards and onwards to the final.
Synonyms and how they differ
- onward and upward
- This is the American form of the expression and carries the same hopeful meaning.
- forward
- Forward as an exclamation is plainer and lacks the cheerful sense of rising and improving.
- onwards
- Onwards only says to move on, while upwards and onwards adds a sense of progress.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: upwards and onwards or up and away?
upwards and onwards vs up and away
Up and away describes leaving or taking off, whereas upwards and onwards encourages carrying on with progress.
Practice
After a disappointing meeting, the manager smiled and said, 'Well, ____!' What was she doing?
Choose one answer.
Upwards and onwards is a cheerful push to move on and improve. It is not literal directions.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “upwards and onwards”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.