ups and downs
B2Informal to neutral. Common in spoken and written narrative contexts.
Definition
Meaning
Periods of good fortune or happiness alternating with periods of bad fortune or difficulty.
The alternating periods of success and failure, prosperity and adversity, or happiness and unhappiness that characterize a long-term situation, relationship, or life experience.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Always plural. Treats contrasting experiences as an inherent, cyclical pattern rather than isolated events. Often implies persistence through adversity.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant lexical or syntactic differences. Usage and frequency are identical.
Connotations
Identical connotations in both varieties.
Frequency
Equally common and idiomatic in both BrE and AmE.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
experience the ups and downs of NPgo through its ups and downsNP has had its ups and downswith all the ups and downsVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “ride out the ups and downs”
- “take the ups with the downs”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Refers to market volatility, company performance cycles, or career progression. e.g., 'The startup weathered the ups and downs of the first five years.'
Academic
Used in historical, economic, or psychological texts to describe cyclical patterns over time.
Everyday
Commonly describes relationships, health, moods, or any long-term project. e.g., 'Every marriage has its ups and downs.'
Technical
Rare in highly technical registers except in economics (business cycles) or signal processing (waveforms).
Examples
By CEFR Level
- Life has ups and downs.
- Our team had ups and downs this season.
- Every friendship goes through ups and downs.
- The business experienced many ups and downs in the beginning.
- Despite the ups and downs of the political campaign, she remained focused.
- The novel charts the ups and downs of the family over three generations.
- The peace process has had its inevitable ups and downs, but the overall trajectory is positive.
- Investors must be prepared to weather the market's ups and downs for long-term gains.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Imagine a line on a heart monitor or stock chart going UP and then DOWN repeatedly — that's the visual pattern of 'ups and downs' in life.
Conceptual Metaphor
LIFE IS A JOURNEY WITH HILLS (ups/good) AND VALLEYS (downs/bad). EXPERIENCES ARE PHYSICAL MOVEMENTS (going through ups and downs).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid translating literally as 'верхи и низы' – this is not idiomatic. The standard translation is 'взлёты и падения'. Do not confuse with 'плюсы и минусы' (pros and cons).
Common Mistakes
- Using a singular form (*up and down). Using it as an adjective (*an ups-and-downs relationship) instead of a noun phrase (a relationship with its ups and downs).
Practice
Quiz
Which sentence uses 'ups and downs' INCORRECTLY?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, the fixed phrase is always plural. You cannot say 'an up and down' in this idiomatic sense.
No. As a plural noun phrase, it takes a plural verb: 'There have been many ups and downs.'
'Ups and downs' refers to alternating periods of good and bad fortune over time. 'Pros and cons' refers to the advantages and disadvantages of a specific choice or thing, considered at one point in time.
It is neutral but slightly informal. In very formal writing, 'vicissitudes' or 'fluctuations' might be preferred, but 'ups and downs' is acceptable in most contexts.