1-up

/ˈwʌn ʌp/UK/wɒn ʌp/

noun

An item that grants the player an extra life in the game, staving off game over by one more try.

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Meanings

noun1-up (plural 1-ups)

plural 1-ups · alternative one-up

  1. video gamesAn item that grants the player an extra life in the game, staving off game over by one more try.
  2. video gamesIn a game with multiple players, an indicator or identifier of player 1.

    This is the players turn (1-up or 2-up)

    1998, Sega Genesis, Frogger 1998 - Walkthrough
    1 more example

    Before any player registers points, the PAC-MAN scoring table displays in white "1 UP" and "2 UP" where the scores will appear.

    1982, Harlington Wood, Jr., Atari v. North American Philips Consumer Electronics Corp., 672 F.2d 607, n. 2 (7th Cir. 1982)

Origin

"Extra life" sense borrowed from Japanese 1UP(ワンアップ) (wan'appu) and perhaps popularized by Super Mario Bros. (1985); but the term existed earlier in multi-player pinball and other arcade games in the 1960s, where "1Up" and "2Up" were used as flashing notifications to indicate who would play next (or who was "up" next in order). See https://www.inverse.com/gaming/1up-meaning-origin-definition-gaming.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

German 1-Up
  • 1-UpAn item that grants the player an extra life in the game, staving off game over by one more try
Icelandic aukalíf
  • aukalífAn item that grants the player an extra life in the game, staving off game over by one more try
Japanese 1UP (wan appu), ワンアップ
  • 1UP (wan appu)An item that grants the player an extra life in the game, staving off game over by one more try
  • ワンアップ (wan appu)An item that grants the player an extra life in the game, staving off game over by one more try
Korean 1UP (1-eop), 원 업
  • 1UP (1-eop)An item that grants the player an extra life in the game, staving off game over by one more try
  • 원 업 (won eop)An item that grants the player an extra life in the game, staving off game over by one more try
Swedish extraliv
  • extralivAn item that grants the player an extra life in the game, staving off game over by one more try
Cite this entry
APA

1-up. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/1-up

MLA

“1-up.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/1-up. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “1-up,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/1-up.

Source: 1-up on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.