Meaning of upright in English:

upright

Pronunciation /ˈʌprʌɪt/

See synonyms for upright

Translate upright into Spanish

adjective

1(of a person) sitting or standing with the back straight.
‘an upright posture’
- ‘He was upright immediately, staring at her in shock.’
- ‘Within a matter of seconds, he was snoring as if he were not upright in a car, but lying comfortably in his own bed.’
- ‘When we parted she was upright, energised, smiling and laughing.’
- ‘But suddenly, instead of finding herself laying in the filth, she was shocked to find she was still upright.’
- ‘He was upright in an instant, huffing and puffing with such violence that his entire body seemed to quake and quiver with every breath.’
- ‘Flips were pretty basic, but basically you angled the tip of the board up and then brought it around in a circle until you were upright again.’
- ‘A few of them looked up at this lone upright figure, wading through the masses, but they didn't pay him much heed.’
- ‘Before I was fully upright, a powerful surge of pain engulfed my body.’
- ‘There was also a family of four, a tall, upright man with fair hair, and a woman beside him who was plump and dark-haired.’
- ‘When I was finally upright, I was almost trembling with pain, but I had only come close to yelping once.’
- ‘Though she was upright, the blood seemed to be rushing from her head.’
- ‘As soon as she was upright again, she began running as fast as she could along the ridge, angling uphill and away from the river.’
- ‘By sitting in a relaxed upright position, you make effective use of your vestibular system, which helps us to maintain balance.’
- ‘Horseriding is an excellent antidote for those of us who slouch, since stomach muscles must be kept tight in order to maintain an upright position in the saddle.’
- ‘With barbell in hand, and squeezing with your hamstrings, raise your body to an upright position.’
- ‘There may be less room in the front, but it still offers comfort and space for driver and passenger alike, and a pleasantly upright driving position gives you a sense of command.’
- ‘She drew herself back to an upright position, exhaling.’
- ‘Suddenly she was brought to an upright position, blood rushed back down from her previously upside down head, before it came back up to flame her pale face.’
- ‘Next she returns to an upright position and repeats the rotation with her arms extended overhead, rotating toward her left side and then her right.’
- ‘She was being dragged straight towards the water when she pulled her knees up to her chest and heaved with her feet, regaining an upright position.’
upright, erect, vertical, plumb, upended, on end, rearing, straight, straight up and down, perpendicular
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1. 1.1Placed in a vertical position.
  ‘upright stone slabs’
  ‘It is a typical stone row, comprising a line of upright stone slabs, constructed about 2000 bc as a ceremonial site.’
  ‘Each gate will have the ability to revolve on a hinge, from a horizontal resting position on the bottom of the sea to an upright position rising above sea level.’
  ‘It clicks into place in an upright position when needed.’
  ‘Instead, it will be placed in an upright position next to the speaker.’
  ‘He said Easter Island now has some trees and many of the statues have been brought to an upright position again.’
  ‘She's in very good condition, in an upright position on the seabed.’
  ‘This space is large enough to accommodate four large Samsonite suitcases in an upright position.’
  ‘The bathroom, for example, has a bath that can be moved in an upright position, aromatic oils and special music can be added.’
  ‘The man finally stands up and slowly pulls his motorbike into an upright position.’
  ‘Then I heard a choking noise and when I came into the lounge I found Lee stuck under the chair which was in its normal upright position.’
  ‘Encourage the stem that will form the new plant to grow straight by gently bending it into an upright position and attaching it to a cane.’
  ‘When he realised what had happened, he groaned and stood slowly, removing the chair from under him before looking over to me and glaring as he returned it to an upright position.’
  ‘This variation of a traditional hitch rack allows you to carry three to four bikes in an upright position, making the loading and unloading of bikes a breeze.’
  ‘The sidecar is free to pivot relative to the bike, so the bike can lean, steer, even fall over, while the sidecar maintains its upright position.’
  ‘These are placed in an upright position with their mouths upward, stopped up with seaweed or imperishable grass, and covered with earth.’
  ‘Make sure your tray tables are in the upright position.’
  ‘The colossal white columns, which lean forward 20 centimeters, will be returned to their upright position.’
  ‘Please return all seatbacks to their full upright position.’
  ‘It usually perches in a diagonal rather than upright position.’
  ‘Today, the stones lie flat and it is uncertain whether they were ever upright; excavations in 1901-2 failed to reveal any sockets.’
2. 1.2(of a piano) having vertical strings.
  ‘About 40 Steinways, including upright and grand pianos, were on sale to amateur musicians and experts hunting bargains.’
  ‘The piano was a shiny black upright model, clean and well-cared for.’
  ‘The piano itself sounds as though it's an old upright one that's seen better days, but it's still able to hold a tune, or at least the memory of one.’
  vertical, perpendicular, plumb, straight, straight up, straight up and down, bolt upright, erect, on end, standing up, rearing, rampant
  View synonyms
3. 1.3Greater in height than breadth.
  ‘an upright freezer’
  ‘To reduce the height of a fast growing rambling rose on an upright trellis, try looping and tying the flowering canes as shown.’
  ‘They're usually upright, strong growers with green summer leaves and red, orange, and gold fall color.’
  ‘The third common feature of poorly designed logos is an upright shape.’
  ‘It's an upright evergreen shrub which, around Christmas and into January, produces plenty of white, pink-tinted flowers.’
  ‘A recent addition is an upright solar panel that Trevor swivels manually to keep it pointed at the sun.’
4. 1.4Denoting a device designed to be used in a vertical position.
  ‘an upright vacuum cleaner’
  ‘Mr. Starkley looked at the clock incorporated into his pen holder, a pair of upright pens with the clock between them mounted in the hub of a brass ship's wheel.’
  ‘Some light boxes look like upright lamps, while others are small and rectangular.’
  ‘Claim 4 relates to an upright appliance on wheels having a cleaning head with a rotatable brush at the dirty air inlet.’
  ‘Back home I fixed lunch while Graham assembled the new vacuum cleaner - an impressively powerful cyclonic upright machine.’
  ‘When turned off the upright lamp is empty and silent but when switched on it comes alive, its nylon shade inflating via an internal fan to become a glowing globe.’
  ‘They take off the valve, and cut off the leaking end of the upright pipe. They add in a new section of pipe and put it all back together.’
  ‘He saw his sword lying beside him and had an idea, he quickly grabbed his sword and stuck it deeply into the ground and hung onto it, standing behind the upright sword.’
  ‘We follow the propshaft tunnel forwards along the keel to an intact and upright engine and a compact pair of boilers.’
  ‘It is a sort of a big board game type contraption, free standing, and the size of an upright fridge.’
  ‘Some manufacturers offer a matching fridge for their upright freezers.’
  ‘In total we raised more than enough to reach our goal of an upright freezer for the women's refuge.’
  ‘She set a place for each of them, then went to the large, upright freezer and pulled out three icy mugs.’
  ‘Visual inspection of the quality of the metal pattern was carried out using a 20x lens on an upright light microscope.’
  ‘Optimally, the engine is designed to allow the filter to stand upright, so the oil can drain out for easy recycling.’
  ‘William Hoover bought the patent from Spangler, his wife's cousin, and produced the first upright vacuum cleaner in 1908.’
  ‘Wil-Dog, who used to play in Macy Gray's band, plays electric bass, upright bass, and guitar.’
  ‘Washer-driers and upright vacuum cleaners, but not cylinder ones, are among the least reliable products.’
  ‘Avalos has substituted upright flashlights, instruments of surveillance, for votive candles.’
  ‘The old upright Kelvinator fridge still humming away in the corner can still be updated and reused, even in the 21st century.’
  ‘The upright booth positioned to one side of the stage, was the point of arrival and exit.’
5. 1.5Denoting a chair with a straight back and typically no arms.
  ‘In the middle of the small and chaotic living room of Smith's south London high-rise council flat is a stylish but unremarkable upright chair.’
  ‘They sat by the fire on upright chairs, wooden and unforgiving; they were old, I thought, but sadly had no armchair.’
  ‘We three girls sat on very uncomfortable upright chairs around the mock-Jacobean dining table.’
  ‘He is sitting in an upright chair and his shirt is unbuttoned, as if torn open.’
  ‘Maintain good posture: it is far better to eat sitting on an upright chair than slumped in front of the television.’
  ‘They had the same mixture of comfortable sofas and chairs and slightly more serious upright chairs and tables.’
  ‘The O'Driscolls showed a series of slimline upright chairs made with a powder coated enamelled steel frame to complement the table's base.’
  ‘Every week I find myself walking into a room without any windows and with only bare white walls and cold, hard, upright chairs.’
  ‘She dumped herself in one of the upright chairs in the room and racked her brains for one more idea.’
  ‘Small enough to fit into your suitcase, they usually consist of a cloth seat plus a wide belt, which fastens to upright chairs.’
2Strictly honourable or honest.
‘an upright member of the community’
- ‘John was a much loved and respected member of the community, known for his upright and honest nature.’
- ‘A fine noble gentleman, honest and upright, he gained the respect of everybody.’
- ‘He seemed a decent fellow - honest, upright, considerate, and willing to put others before himself.’
- ‘The vast majority of them are decent, upright people who share our horror at what has happened.’
- ‘She was upright, Scottish and religious, and dominated my young life. She read to me for hours and gave me my faith, and I'm grateful to Nana for that.’
- ‘Its employment roster is a roll-call of upright citizens.’
- ‘Faultless and upright people have been killed.’
- ‘It attempts, in parallels, to raise serious political and emotional questions about the moral predicament of the present day upright people.’
- ‘It is lamentable that the defendant has to pay such a disastrous price to be an upright person.’
- ‘We need upright people in the council because there is important work to do.’
- ‘She was always kind, and he certainly loved eating her cookies, which he was fed fairly often, but she always made James slightly nervous, in that she was extremely upright all the time.’
- ‘Job recovered in the end, but many just, upright men do not.’
- ‘Born in Warwickshire, she was the daughter of a land agent whose moral qualities are reflected in those of the upright Adam Bede.’
- ‘Being of upright character is not at all a prerequisite for being a pop star.’
- ‘Most business people are upright citizens; but that does not change the fact that business is conducted for private gain and not for public benefit.’
- ‘I could also extend effective protection to upright officers who happened to displease powerful politicians.’
- ‘Corruption like all other vices is a moral issue and we feel that the public can avoid being accomplices if they are morally upright.’
- ‘When officials are upright and vigilant, drivers will be extra cautious.’
- ‘A somber, upright man, he is interested only in truth and justice.’
- ‘This is the engaging story of an upright man's quest to protect his family, find love, and see justice done.’
honest, honourable, upstanding, respectable, reputable, high-minded, law-abiding, right-minded, worthy, moral, ethical, righteous, decent, good, virtuous, principled, high-principled, of principle, proper, correct, just, noble, incorruptible, anti-corruption, conscientious
View synonyms

adverb

In or into an upright position.
‘she was sitting upright in bed’
- ‘He looked steadily at Noel and Powell to show them he'd kept the trees upright.’
- ‘The wreck, called the Borghild, lies upright on the sea bed just offshore from a lighthouse and her decks are at 42m.’
- ‘After a few sessions with a ‘healing horse’ at the academy, he not only walks but sits upright on a horseback on his own.’
- ‘The man, whose name is evocative of fear and hatred in films, stands upright without even a stoop to suggest his 71 years.’
- ‘When she feebly started to push herself upright they jumped back and whispered to each other.’
- ‘If you can't cook asparagus immediately, the National Farmers' Union says you can place the stems upright in a container with a little water to cover the ends and store in the fridge.’
- ‘Stop watering around April, store the pots upright or on their sides, anywhere convenient - under a greenhouse bench is a good place - and leave them to dry out.’
- ‘Today, on his third visit, Jason coaxed her to stand upright unaided (no grabrail) from her wheelchair.’
- ‘Dafoe sits upright, looking surprised, as if he's said too much.’
- ‘The word ‘pillar’ brings to mind something of great strength that stands upright and holds an important structure in place.’
- ‘The answer of course is ‘man,’ who crawls as an infant, walks upright in adulthood, and uses a cane in old age.’
- ‘Sitting upright Carl looked around his room and confirmed that he was alone.’
- ‘Heaving his head upright Michael sipped at the bitter, oily coffee and tried to focus on his sister.’
- ‘According to the principles of calligraphy, writing should be upright or slanting to the right.’
- ‘Erik woke slowly, but when he realized he hadn't heard anything about Kallie, he bolted upright, causing him to get a little lightheaded.’
- ‘I grasped his muscular arms and tried to stand upright, but as I began to straighten up, I felt dizzy again, and everything went black.’
- ‘Carefully, he straightened until he was standing upright.’
- ‘She bolts upright, clutching the blankets around her tightly.’
- ‘Mr Venables sat upright, staring straight ahead with his lips thin with rage.’
- ‘Samantha Ashton stirred and sat perfectly upright in the chair.’

noun

1A post or rod fixed vertically, especially as a structural support.
‘the stone uprights of the parapet’
- ‘The ‘smart’ fence uses breakable metal pins inserted between the top pole and the uprights supporting it.’
- ‘The winds, which had now swung south-east sent great waves over those who still clung to anything they could get a grip on, such as chains, steel uprights or iron support bars.’
- ‘The most common arch form is constructed of steel uprights supported in concrete-filled oil drums, with a trellised head spanning the road.’
- ‘Now the two floors of the restaurant are laid out around the stout timber uprights which support the internal floors.’
- ‘The drive wheel is held by a pair of short posts, and the uprights and spokes are very ornately turned.’
- ‘Typical of the Medway group of long barrows, it comprises three large uprights supporting a single massive capstone.’
- ‘He worked his hands up the carved stone uprights and grunted as he got a knee over the balcony's lip and rolled over the railing.’
- ‘In this case, there are four antennas mounted on each of the three upright support structures.’
- ‘Fires have burnt most of the uprights to charred stumps but the thick wooden corner posts are still intact.’
- ‘A locked metal gate supported by two thick concrete uprights stood in the way.’
- ‘Carefully I climbed over the rickety fence, just wooden poles slung between uprights.’
- ‘The spaces between the posts are filled in with redwood patterned inserts or detailed uprights that can alternate in size for extra design interest.’
- ‘Hutton Mount Limited reported the removal of the horizontal barrier in a recent newsletter and said the bollards and uprights were to remain standing as a ‘very effective speed restriction’.’
- ‘Near the centre was a tall standing stone now marked by a concrete obelisk, adjacent to which was a short straight line of stones which may have formed one side of a square around the central upright.’
- ‘The timbers were the uprights of wattle fences, the complex containing up to 100,000 square feet or 30,500 square metres of fencing, some of which still survives.’
- ‘Make sure safety bars are inserted into the uprights.’
column, standard, stanchion, post, pole
View synonyms
2An upright piano.
‘a first-class upright that would satisfy an amateur pianist’
- ‘One option for families with children studying piano is to purchase uprights with the reduced keyboard and trade up later, as is done with different size violins.’
- ‘The ‘soft pedal’ on some uprights moves the whole set of hammers closer to the strings, so that they give a less powerful blow.’
- ‘Many manufacturers will offer both uprights and grands with smaller keyboards.’
- ‘Still in 1910, 139,000 teachers were teaching Americans how to play on parlor pianos, uprights, baby grands and grands.’
- ‘Some years ago, I had donated a very good upright to my church.’
- ‘Mrs. Schultze came to the edge of the porch and put a pale, long fingered hand against the upright.’
- ‘Both uprights were broken, probably on impact.’
- ‘The orchestra sounds small, the piano almost like an upright compared to a grand with Nibley playing with a fluidity that is spectacular.’
- ‘At home I put the music on my piano, a 1908 upright, not too different, probably, from Florence's.’
- ‘It was a huge old upright, but, to my eyes, it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.’
- ‘A beautiful 1930s upright, finished in polished walnut, with a tone to die for.’
- ‘He notes that grand pianos have faster, kick-action performance that is not found in a standard upright.’