ups and downs

plural noun

1. rises and falls of fortune; good and bad times:

   Every business has its ups and downs.

ups and downs

plural noun

1. alternating periods of good and bad fortune, high and low spirits, etc

Word History and Origins

Origin of ups and downs¹

First recorded in 1650–60

Idioms and Phrases

Good times and bad times, successes and failures, as in We've had our ups and downs but things are going fairly well now . This term was first recorded in 1659.

Example Sentences

"We've had ups and downs, of course, but this is a culmination of a lot of people's hard work," says Cullen, who also is a member of UI Health Care Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center.

From Science Daily

"I don't think it's any secret we had our ups and downs, but towards the end we were pretty tight," said Keothavong.

From BBC

“Then she went again the next day. She liked it a lot. I discussed this film, all the layers and contexts, with her over many, many years. She was happy that, regardless of all the ups and downs, that it finally came together.”

From Los Angeles Times

As Peggy, she weathered the ups and downs of life in Ambridge, with plot lines including alcoholism, gambling, and dementia, until Spencer’s retirement in 2022 at the age of 103.

From BBC

Peggy Woolley, formerly Archer, was often viewed as a traditionalist, conservative character in the soap opera charting the ups and downs of life in fictional village of Ambridge.

From BBC