upscale

What it means

1. USExpensive and designed to appeal to affluent consumers.

   For example, a good location for resale, such as an upscale suburb of new homes, will cost more money than a piece of land in an established neighborhood of small, postwar houses.

   1998, Sarah Susanka, Kira Obolensky, The not so so big house: a blueprint for the way we really live, Taunton Press, →ISBN, page 147

   1 more example

   In Rio de Janeiro, thousands protested in a gritty area far from the city’s upscale seaside districts. In other cities, demonstrators blocked roads, barged into City Council meetings or interrupted sessions of local lawmakers, clapping loudly and sometimes taking over the microphone.

   2013 June 18, Simon Romero, “Protests Widen as Brazilians Chide Leaders”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 13 Mar 2019, retrieved 21 Jun 2013

   Synonyms: upmarket, high-class · Antonyms: downscale

In a sentence

For example, a good location for resale, such as an upscale suburb of new homes, will cost more money than a piece of land in an established neighborhood of small, postwar houses.

1998, Sarah Susanka, Kira Obolensky, The not so so big house: a blueprint for the way we really live, Taunton Press, →ISBN, page 147

Where it comes from

From up + scale, 1966 (adjective), 1963 (verb).