up adv.
1. drunk.
![[Ire]](/static/img/flags/ire.png "Ireland") | Irishman in London II i: I’m quite up — I’m almost corn’d, faith. |
2. (orig. UK Und.) arrested; in prison.
![[UK]](/static/img/flags/uk.png "United Kingdom") | Five Years’ Penal Servitude 5: A series of rapid inquiries as to who I was and what I was ‘up’ for. | |
![[Aus]](/static/img/flags/aus.png "Australia") | Bushranger’s Sweetheart 113: ‘What’s he up for?’ ‘Oh, nothing much.’. | |
 | Larne Times (Belfast) 30 Apr. 8/7: Kelly had been ‘up’ five times, all for larceny. | |
| Autobiog. of a Thief 230: Well, mate, what are you up for? | |
| Keep The Aspidistra Flying (1962) 197: A ragged dirty man who claimed to be a coster ‘up’ for obstruction, was put into the cell. | |
![[US]](/static/img/flags/us.png "United States") | Men of the Und. 243: The house burglar Donald Lowrie. Up for his first jolt. | |
| Carlito’s Way 19: Rocco Fabrizi, who was up for stealing cars. | |
| Always Running (1996) 53: up for keeps – sentenced for life. |
3. (orig. US) mentally stimulated, excited, hopeful (cf. up adj. (3)).
| Harder They Fall (1971) 298: The big fella’s got to be up to stay in there with Stein. | |
| There Must Be a Pony! 298: I hadn’t seen her so ‘up’ [...] since before Ben died. | |
| Ladies’ Man (1985) 28: Maybe ‘Feelings’ wasn’t ‘up’ enough. Maybe they only liked dirty songs. | |
| Christine 336: Leigh Cabot was not up. She flunked an exam for the first time in her high school career. | |
| Woke Racism 20: ‘They were up on some Elect shit’. |
4. (also up on) intoxicated by a drug (cf. up adj. (2)).
| Duke 130: I’m feeling cool as hell [...] I’m way up. | |
| Go, Man, Go! 35: You level pretty fast. I’m still up there. High and groovy. | |
| Letter in Dear America (1985) 27 Apr. 155: I think he was up on pot. | |
| Faggots 228: Matching their evening’s drugs, coordinated with Pepino’s own, so that clashing cymbals jerked them Up. | |
| (con. 1986) Sweet Forever 126: No question [...] this Karras is up on something for sure. | |
| Sheepshagger 62: Pill time as well. Do em in now an we’ll be well up by-a time we get yer. |
5. (US black) of a person, ready, prepared.
| Vice Trap 54: Gremie boy’s up [...] I told him about you hustling those goodies for our friend. | |
| Only a Game 70: He worries about [...] whether or not his own team will be ‘up’ for the game. | |
| Because the Night 160: I'm considering a rather avant garde visual aid session [...] Would you be up for that?’. | |
| Way Past Cool 244: I need you full-up tonight. | |
| ‘Straight Life’ Oz ser. 1 ep. 5 [TV script] If we going to be partners, we just ought to be up on how big a risk we going to take. | |
| Teen Lingo: The Source for Youth Ministry 🌐 we’re up Something said when it’s time to leave ‘Hey we’re up!’. | |
| Way Home (2009) 257: You know what you’re fixin to do? [...] are you up for it? | |
| Viva La Madness 144: His stable of up-for-it birds who loved his sexy accent. | |
| Empty Wigs (t/s) 190: Oh, they’re [i.e. old women] all up for it. They’re all little goers at heart. |
6. (US campus) sexually aroused.
| et al. CUSS. | |
| Killing Time 187: He’d come back there every week for hormone shots. To keep his thing up. |
7. (US) upset; bothered.
| Bell’s Life in Sydney 14 Nov. 3/3: Touch her once on any ‘delicate point’ and she was ’up’ immediately, and victimised the offender by splitting his head open with a bottle. | |
| Current Sl. VI. |
8. mentally stimulated in a positive or negative way, energised or stressed.
| (con. 1967) Welcome to Vietnam (1989) 108: You need an extra dimension to deal with the tension of being so up all the time. | |
| Lockie Leonard, Legend (1998) 170: ‘My mum’s [...] had a kind of breakdown.’ ‘Man. Oh, mate. She’s so up. So together, I can’t believe it.’. |
9. (US black) tense, nervous.
| Six Out Seven (1994) 321: Don’t get up, man. Just be yourself. |
10. interested, participating.
| ‘Hot Shots’ Wire ser. 2 ep. 3 [TV script] ‘You hit D?’ ‘D ain’t up’. |
11. see up to adv.
In phrases
1. to bring someone before the authorities, usu. a court.
| Satirist (London) 24 June 202/2: He [i.e. a policeman] soon brought her down, and then brought her up, / To beg of the Dogberries merciful pardon . | |
| Eve. News (Sydney) 15 May 7/5: The next day we were ‘had up,’ and we both said that if it had not been for the warder we would have escaped. | |
| Philosophy of Johnny the Gent 12: [A]s the Wise Crackin’ Kid told the judge the other mornin’ when they had him up fer a witness. | |
| Sport (Adelaide) 7 Mar. 5/6: You will be ‘had up’ for kidnapping if you are not more careful. | |
| Adventures of Jimmie Dale (1918) I iv: We’ve never had him up for anything. | |
| Miss Pym Disposes (1957) 36: ‘Farthing was had up last Christmas term for riding her bike without lights’ . | |
![[NZ]](/static/img/flags/nz.png "New Zealand") | Dict. of Kiwi Sl. 55/2: have up bring before a court; eg ‘Have him up over it, he hasn’t got a legal leg to stand on.’. | |
| Reed Dict. of N.Z. Sl. [as cit. 1988]. | |
| Viva La Madness 302: Ain’t you worried about being had up? |
2. to have someone, e.g. a criminal, scheduled for some form of action by the authorities.
| ‘Broken’ in Broken 4: They’ve had the Honduran up for months. |
(Aus.) in prison.
| Bulletin (Sydney) 12 Sept. 52/1: [as cited] Did. yer. see. my. Bill ‘up above’ she said in a husky whisper. yes, replied enery shaking his head mournfully. one uv the ‘screws’ gave im er bashing Just. before I came out. |
(US) believing in, adhering to, taken by.
| Poet X 24: Maybe they thought we’d already been confirmed, / with the way our mothers are always up in the church. |
see sense 4 above.
SE in slang uses
In phrases
(US black) aware, knowledgeable.
| ‘Never Scared’ 🎵 Now all my soldiers (soldiers), thugs (thugs), niggaz (yea!), I know you want it! / Don’t stop, get it, get it, bitches betta get up on it! |
(US black) aware, appreciative of what is important.
| Orig. Hbk of Harlem Jive 38: If you were up on the stickers, like I am, you’d dig that they, themselves, are just out there mugging. |