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grow up

phraseA22 meaningsNot compared — the two pools are counted one word at a time, so a phrase has no score

To grow up is to change slowly from a child into an adult. Years of it, and nobody notices it happening.

It covers the whole process, so asking where somebody grew up asks about their childhood rather than their height. The word is also an instruction, and telling somebody to grow up is a real rebuke meaning stop behaving childishly. The related adjective grown-up is what children call adults, and a grown-up conversation is a serious one. The past is grew up, which does not stay in one piece.

Definitions of grow up

  1. 1phrasegrow upTo develop from a child into an adult.A2

    “He watched his children grow up in that house.”

  2. 2phrasestopUsed to tell someone to stop behaving childishly.A2

    “Oh, grow up, both of you.”

Where it comes from

  1. Middle English

    upgrowen

  2. English, today

    grow up

Dissimilated from Middle English upgrowen.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Everyday Verbs, A Man Called Ove

First appears in chapter 5 of A Man Called Ove.

Practise this word