Phrasal verb
be up
Definition
phrasal verb. to be awake and out of bed; also means that a period of time has finished.
phrasal verb. to be awake and in a standing or active state after sleep; alternatively, to have reached the end of a specific time limit.
Examples
“I have been up since six this morning.”
“The teacher told the students that their time was up and they had to stop writing.”
“Despite the late hour, several lights were still on in the house, suggesting that the family was still up.”
Examples
simple
“I have been up since six this morning.”
contextual
“The teacher told the students that their time was up and they had to stop writing.”
complex
“Despite the late hour, several lights were still on in the house, suggesting that the family was still up.”
Usage
often used with 'since' for time or as a standalone predicate for expired time.
Teaching tip
this phrasal verb is intransitive and functions as a state; distinguish between the 'awake' sense and the 'expired time' sense which is common in testing environments.
Pitfall
I am up from 7:00.
I have been up since 7:00.
use 'since' to show the starting point of being awake, and use the present perfect for a state continuing until now.
Phrasal verb
Particles
up
Separability
inseparable
Pattern
be + up
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/be-up