What Does Grow Up Mean?
Grow up has two main meanings.
- Become an adult: you change from a child into a grown person.
- Spend your childhood somewhere: that place is where you were a child.
I want to be a vet when I grow up.
Grandpa grew up on a farm.
People also say Grow up! to tell someone to stop acting like a little child. That can sound unkind, so we will not practise it here.
🗣️ Natural Examples
Becoming an adult:
What do you want to be when you grow up?
The kitten has grown up very quickly.
Mia is growing up fast. She is taller than her mum now.
Where you spent your childhood:
Where did you grow up?
I grew up by the sea.
Mia grew up speaking two languages.
✂️ Can You Separate It?
No. Grow up is inseparable. It takes no object, so nothing goes in the middle.
✅ She grew up in Spain.
❌ She grew her up in Spain.
For the place, add a small word like in, on or near.
✅ I grew up in a small town.
✅ He grew up near the sea.
🛠️ How to Use It
- Become an adult: grow up. When I grow up, I will be a pilot.
- Place of childhood: grow up in/on/near + place.
- Past tense: grew up. Past participle: grown up.
- Not a phrasal verb: grown-up with a hyphen is a word for an adult. Ask a grown-up.
⚠️ Common Mistakes
Nobody grows people up.
❌ My parents grew me up in Kenya.
✅ I grew up in Kenya. / My parents brought me up in Kenya.
Verb or noun?
✅ I want to grow up. (verb)
✅ Ask a grown-up for help. (a word for an adult)
There is no "grow down".
❌ I grew down.
✅ I grew up.
To learn about bring up, read Bring Up.
💬 In a Conversation
Sam: What do you want to be when you grow up?
Mia: A zookeeper. What about you?
Sam: A grown-up.
Mia: That is the plan for everyone.
💡 The OddLingo Trick
Think of a height chart on the wall. As you get older, the pencil mark goes up.
That is why you grow up. People go up in age and height. There is no mark for growing down.
👯 Similar Expressions
- bring up: to raise a child. See Bring Up.
- grown-up: a word for an adult.
- become an adult: the plain way to say it.