ENGLISH
REFERENCE

one up

idiom
Meaning

To outdo, to perform something slightly better than a competitor's prior effort.


Examples
SIMPLE

She always tries to one up her sister's stories.

CONTEXTUAL

After he mentioned his promotion, his friend had to one up him by talking about his new house.

COMPLEX

In the competitive world of corporate law, junior associates constantly seek subtle ways to one up one another without appearing openly ambitious.

Anchors to
Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    as best one can

    In the best possible way, given one's circumstances and abilities.

  2. 02

    as far as one knows

    To the best of one's knowledge, as far as someone knows or possible information to be gathered about the topic, subject, aspect, or situation.

  3. 03

    back to square one

    Located back at the start, as after a dead end or failure.

  4. 04

    beat as one

    To share the same feelings.

  5. 05

    become one flesh

    To join together in marriage; to develop a unifying bond as a result of marrying.

  6. 06

    bite off more than one can chew

    To try to do too much; to take on or attempt more than one is capable of doing.

  7. 07

    bite the big one

    To perform poorly; to fail.

  8. 08

    bite the hand that feeds one

    To cause harm to a benefactor (especially one that one is dependent on, thus with the idea that this behaviour is self-damaging).

Last updated April 17, 2026