up-and-ˈcoming, a.
[up adv.2 21.]
a. U.S. Active, alert, wide-awake, energetic.
| 1889 Harper's Mag. Dec. 146/2 Can't you hear just how up an' comin' it was? 1901 Harper's Mag. CII. 678/1 She had an up and coming kind of way with her. 1926 F. N. Hart Bellamy Trial i. 10 Redfield's pretty up and coming for a place of its size. 1946 R. Lehmann Gipsy's Baby 59 They are of course admitting the blond curls of my brother; perhaps the juicy, up and coming appearance of all the four. Jolly-looking family. 1954 Wodehouse Jeeves & Feudal Spirit ii. 20 His attitude towards me had been that of an official at Borstal told off to keep an eye on a more than ordinarily up-and-coming juvenile delinquent. |
b. Promising, making progress, beginning to achieve success. orig. U.S.
| 1926 R. Hughes in Hearst's Internat. Feb. 44/1 The up-and-coming young prize-fighter ‘Curly’ Boyle. 1950 G. Hackforth-Jones Worst Enemy i. 19 Next to Meriton I would have placed Peters (on his reports) as a most up-and-coming youngster. 1959 ‘R. Simons’ Houseboat Killings vi. 67 ‘He's one of our up-and-coming young men.’ ‘Oh. So he is a successful artist?’ 1977 B. Pym Quartet in Autumn xviii. 161 Their fashionable little house in that up-and-coming district by the common. |
Hence up-and-ˈcomer, an up-and-coming person; up-and-ˈcomingness.
| 1890 Advance (Chicago) 24 April, There is about our Methodist brethren..an up-and-a-comingness..that [is]..delightful. 1944 Gen 9 Sept. 24/2 I've named only a few of the up-and-comers. 1968 T. Stoppard Real Inspector Hound (1970) 40 Ah—yes—well, I like to give young up and comers the benefit of my—er—of course, she lacks technique as yet—. 1982 ‘W. Haggard’ Mischief-Makers vi. 77 He's one of their up-and-comers. |