Phrase guide

ups and downs

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

Periods of positive and negative events, moods, or interactions; highs and lows.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic, plural, plural-only

Examples

  • Heidi and Mike had their ups and downs, but they stayed married for more than 60 years.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: upsies and downsies, vicissitude

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Undulations.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: plural, plural-only

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

31 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: ngritje-zbritje — idiomatic
  • Catalan: alts i baixos — idiomatic
  • Chinese Cantonese: 甘苦 (gam1 fu2) — idiomatic
  • Chinese: 甘苦 (kam-khóo) — idiomatic
  • Chinese Mandarin: 起伏 (qǐfú) — idiomatic
  • Chinese Mandarin: 盛衰 (shèngshuāi) — idiomatic
  • Chinese Mandarin: 浮沈 (fúchén) — idiomatic
  • Chinese Mandarin: 浮沉 (fúchén) — idiomatic
  • Chinese Mandarin: 沈浮 (chénfú) — idiomatic
  • Chinese Mandarin: 沉浮 (chénfú) — idiomatic
  • Chinese Mandarin: 甘苦 (gānkǔ) — idiomatic
  • Finnish: ylä- ja alamäet — idiomatic
  • Finnish: ylämäet ja alamäet — idiomatic
  • French: des hauts et des bas — idiomatic
  • German: Höhen und Tiefen — idiomatic
  • Italian: alti e bassi — idiomatic
  • Japanese: 起伏 (kifuku) — idiomatic
  • Japanese: 浮き沈み (ukishizumi) — idiomatic
  • Latvian: baltās un nebaltās dienas — idiomatic
  • Persian: پستی و بلندی (pasti-o-bolandi) — idiomatic
  • Persian: فراز و فرود (farâz-o-forud) — idiomatic
  • Persian: فراز و نشیب (farâz-o-našib) — idiomatic
  • Polish: wzloty i upadki — idiomatic
  • Portuguese: altos e baixos — idiomatic
  • Russian: взлёты и паде́ния (vzljóty i padénija) — idiomatic
  • Spanish: altibajos — idiomatic
  • Spanish: vicisitud — idiomatic
  • Swedish: upp- och nedgångar — idiomatic
  • Telugu: ఆటుపోట్లు (āṭupōṭlu) — idiomatic
  • Turkish: acısı ve tatlısı — idiomatic
  • Turkish: inişli çıkışlı — idiomatic