come up roses

English

Pronunciation

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Verb

come up roses (third-person singular simple present comes up roses, present participle coming up roses, simple past came up roses, past participle come up roses)

1. (idiomatic) To enter into a condition or situation which is favorable; to develop in a pleasing or advantageous manner.
   • 1978, Hubert Selby, Requiem for a Dream, →ISBN, page 127:

     All of a sudden, or so it seemed, the world had turned around and they were coming up roses. Now, instead of the bottle being half empty it was suddenly half full, and getting closer and closer to the top.

   • 1985, Stephen Longstreet, Our Father's House‎^[1], →ISBN, page 233:

     "Buck up, mister. Why, with your background, your knowledge, you'll come up roses."

   • 2006, Suzanne Finstad, Warren Beatty: A Private Man‎^[2], →ISBN, page 221:

     [E]verything came up roses for Warren Beatty. The all-important New York Times review by Brooks Atkinson called him "earnest and attractive".

Usage notes

• Often used in the present participial form: coming up roses.

See also

• come up trumps
• smell like a rose