Upgraded

How to spell upgraded

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce upgraded

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does upgraded mean?

1. verbRaised something to a higher standard, rank, or level of quality, or improved a device or system.

Upgraded in a sentence

• The airline upgraded her seat to business class for free.

• They upgraded the office computers to faster machines last month.

Where does upgraded come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word is built on 'upgrade', a compound formed in English by joining the everyday adverb 'up' to 'grade'. The 'grade' part comes from the Latin gradus, meaning 'a step' or 'a pace', the same root that gives us 'gradual', 'graduate', and 'degree'. 'Upgrade' first appeared in the nineteenth century, originally as a literal term for an upward slope or incline on a road or railway. Over time it shifted to mean raising something to a higher rank, quality, or capability, and by the twentieth century it had become firmly attached to technology, equipment, and travel. The past tense form 'upgraded' simply adds the regular '-ed' ending; the spelling trap is remembering that 'grade' already ends in a silent 'e', so the 'e' is absorbed before the suffix to give 'graded', not 'gradeed'.

How the word is built

• up- (to a higher level)
• grade (step, rank, from Latin gradus 'step')
• -ed (past tense suffix)