How to Use up against in a Sentence

up against

phrase
  • Flip your gaze upward, and the second bed is right there, nestled up against the headliner.
    — New Atlas, 3 July 2026
  • What are English teachers up against in the classroom in 2026?
    — Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
  • The following day, the singer returned to the football field to cheer on Travis in his match-up against the Las Vegas Raiders.
    — Alicia Brunker, InStyle, 3 July 2026
  • Most notably, though, is its easy-to-clean material, which one flight attendant appreciates when up against dirty baggage claims and surprise spills.
    — Julia Morlino, Travel + Leisure, 30 June 2026
  • The Kansas City Royals right-hander matched up against the red-hot Philadelphia Phillies.
    — Kansas City Star, 5 July 2026
  • When two young lovers find themselves up against stubborn, money-minded fathers, Scapin jumps into action with outrageous tricks, bold lies, and comic chaos at every turn.
    — Ut Community Press, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 July 2026
  • France scored from these situations when 1-0 up against Sweden (round of 32), Norway (groups) and Senegal (groups).
    — Simon Hughes, New York Times, 9 July 2026
  • The conditioning was excellent, and the layout offers fantastic variety, winding along the river and pressing up against a local airport.
    — Scott Kramer, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
  • The Sixers can now roll out a perimeter attack of Maxey, Brown and Edgecombe, which is going to be nearly impossible for teams to match up against.
    — Zach Harper, New York Times, 1 July 2026
  • Muncy entered Stage 2 of All-Star fan voting this week as the favorite to claim the starting nod at third base, up against fellow finalist Alec Bohm.
    — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2026
  • The UConn experience under Jim Penders and his staff provided foundation for what Fedko would be up against as a pro.
    — Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 5 July 2026
  • The British, meanwhile, have marked 250 years since Americans rose up against their colonial authority by minting a 250-ounce coin.
    — Max Grinstein, The Washington Examiner, 3 July 2026
  • Technology is improving quickly, and security teams, who are up against growing attack surfaces and constantly changing environments, are already stretched thin on talent.
    — Seemant Sehgal, Forbes.com, 24 Feb. 2026
  • The American Revolution is often told as a heroic story of 13 colonies rising up against a mighty empire and, with some help from France, winning their independence.
    — R. Grant Gilmore Iii, The Conversation, 30 June 2026
  • The lack of competition is another plus when comparing this year with 2022, which was shifted to November and December due to the heat in Qatar, putting the tournament up against football.
    — Dade Hayes, Deadline, 3 July 2026
  • His next assignment appeared far more straightforward — up against Britain’s Arthur Fery, a man ranked more than 100 places below Shelton and with only one Grand Slam match win to his name before this week.
    — Ava Wallace, New York Times, 2 July 2026
  • But there’s significant reason to believe audiences are hooked, especially with limited programming up against it on TV right now aside from MLB action, and an active social media appetite for soccer.
    — John Cassillo, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026
  • The nominees will also be up against former Congressman Greg Lopez, who left the Republican Party in January to run for governor as an unaffiliated candidate.
    — Jesse Sarles, CBS News, 1 July 2026
  • Midway through the second half of the semi-final against Croatia, Messi found himself up against Josko Gvardiol, a man 15 years younger than him, six inches taller and, on the face of it, athletically as well as physically superior.
    — Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 10 July 2026
  • With that, Sarla is up against global players like Joby, Archer, Vertical Airspace, and SkyDrive, as well as Chinese outfits like eHang and TCab Tech.
    — New Atlas, 3 July 2026
  • When the desperate search for Jurek’s last missing victim forces Jonah to send his surrogate daughter, FBI Agent Saga Bauer (Beetz), up against Jurek, how far will Jonah go?
    — Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 7 July 2026
  • At 12, McKenna left his home in the Yukon for a hockey academy in Kelowna, British Columbia, lit it up against older players and went first in the WHL Bantam Draft.
    — Scott Wheeler, New York Times, 26 June 2026
  • Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association President Larry Calderone told Fox News Digital the video shows exactly what rank-and-file officers are up against when staffing runs thin.
    — Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 2 July 2026
  • Right-back Djed Spence pushed infield to track the run of Noah Sadiki, bursting forward from midfield — just as DR Congo right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka had done from the other side, creating multiple runners up against England’s defence.
    — Michael Cox, New York Times, 1 July 2026
  • Haaland is likely to be going up against Manchester City team-mates Marc Guehi and Nico O’Reilly (plus John Stones, who recently left the club), while in midfield two Arsenal players are set to go head to head — Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice.
    — Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 11 July 2026
  • In Outstanding Comedy Series, Hacks will be up against Abbott Elementary, The Bear, Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Nobody Wants This, Only Murders in the Building, Shrinking, and Widow’s Bay.
    — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 8 July 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'up against.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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