How to Use act on/upon in a Sentence

act on/upon

phrasal verb
Definition of act on/uponnext
  • The forces of weight, thrust, drag and lift act on a plane to keep it aloft and moving.
    — Craig Merrett, Discover Magazine, 25 Mar. 2024
  • Waiting to act on 4,000 acres is not to the benefit of the town.
    — Sam Kmack, The Arizona Republic, 9 July 2024
  • The suit alleges that Parker failed to act on any of the warnings.
    — Justin Jouvenal, Washington Post, 15 Nov. 2023
  • The thing that was the most difficult was to just act so much — and a lot of time to act on your own.
    — Beatrice Verhoeven, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Aug. 2024
  • The post concludes with a clip of Williams performing a stand-up act on stage.
    — Michael Lee Simpson, Peoplemag, 31 Oct. 2023
  • The people receiving the warnings need to be able to act on them.
    — Umair Irfan, Vox, 2 July 2024
  • He’s taken the kind of risks many dream of but seldom act upon.
    — Jon Stojan, USA TODAY, 16 June 2023
  • Only then can the court act on a petition closed to the public.
    — Jack Kelly and Matthew Defour, Journal Sentinel, 30 Aug. 2023
  • That change lead to adjustments in how your core, glutes, and shoulders must act on the med ball.
    — David Otey, Men's Health, 20 July 2023
  • But now that these forces are present, evolution can act on them.
    — Max G. Levy, WIRED, 27 Oct. 2024
  • David also received one count of a lewd act on a child under 14.
    — Stephanie Kaloi, Peoplemag, 18 Apr. 2024
  • The war in Ukraine galvanized Mr. Taylor to act on a larger scale.
    — Vivien Fellegi, The Christian Science Monitor, 22 Apr. 2024
  • Johnson has pledged to act on Ukraine aid when the House returns, as the country's war rages on with Russia.
    — Sarah Beth Hensley, ABC News, 9 Apr. 2024
  • The agreement now goes to the Senate, which is expected to quickly act on it.
    — Lawrence Andrea, Journal Sentinel, 31 May 2023
  • Schumer also positioned the Senate last month to act on what could be a two-year increase in the debt ceiling.
    — Tony Romm, Washington Post, 8 May 2023
  • At that time, the district didn't act on the recommendation.
    — The Arizona Republic, 8 Mar. 2024
  • That’s the second-most appearances of any act on the chart; a leading six Taylor Swift songs infuse the first survey.
    — Kevin Rutherford, Billboard, 14 Sep. 2023
  • This makes the medication different from opioids, which act on the brain and spinal cord.
    — Sony Salzman, ABC News, 30 Jan. 2024
  • If the government fails to act on claims within six months, victims can choose to file a lawsuit, a process that could take years to resolve.
    — Brenda Goodman, CNN, 8 Aug. 2024
  • Opioids act on a receptor in the brain that controls breathing.
    — Claire Bugos, Verywell Health, 31 Mar. 2023
  • Congress will now have a little over a week to act on the new proposal before funding runs out.
    — Lauren Peller, ABC News, 22 Sep. 2024
  • Warning: this is not a time to take risks or act on impulse; exercise with caution.
    — Valerie Mesa, Peoplemag, 8 July 2024
  • Consumers in general haven't gotten the message — or haven't had the ability to act on it.
    — Russ Wiles, The Arizona Republic, 14 May 2023
  • Most of the witnesses encouraged congress to act on NIL.
    — Ralph D. Russo, Fortune, 29 Mar. 2023
  • Her voice was her way out, first with a traveling act on the Black vaudeville circuit that her brother also was in.
    — Adam Bell, Charlotte Observer, 9 May 2024
  • Rabbi Eliyahu Dessler argues that every act has two elements: the pe’ulah (the act itself) and the totza’at hape’ulah (the consequences of the act upon the actor).
    — Rabbi Avi Weiss, Sun Sentinel, 8 Jan. 2024
  • The company petitioned the S.E.C. for new rules last summer and even sued the agency for failing to act on its request in April.
    — Emily Flitter, New York Times, 6 June 2023
  • The second is to make a more diverse antivenin that can effectively act on a spectrum of snakebites.
    — Kamala Thiagarajan, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Nov. 2023
  • No Doubt served as the final act on the main stage before Tyler, the Creator’s headline set later on Saturday night.
    — Althea Legaspi, Rolling Stone, 14 Apr. 2024
  • Friction point: Politicians in some states are starting to act on data center skepticism.
    — Mimi Montgomery, Axios, 17 Oct. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'act on/upon.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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