What does "upright" mean?
Upright: Morally erect; having rectitude; honest; just; as, a man upright in all his ways. And that man [Job] was perfect and upright. Job i.
Additional senses
- 2.3. Conformable to moral rectitude. Conscience rewards upright conduct with pleasure. J. M. Mason.
- 3.Stretched out face upward; flat on the back. [Obs.] " He lay upright." Chaucer. Upright drill (Mach.), a drilling machine having the spindle vertical. Note: This word and its derivatives are usually pronounced in prose with the accent on the first syllable. But they are frequently pronounced with the accent on the second in poetry, and the accent on either syllable is admissible.
- 4.Something standing upright, as a piece of timber in a building. See Illust. of Frame.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00