The spelling of the phrase "were the up" corresponds with the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) phonetic transcription [wɜːr ðə ʌp]. "Were" is pronounced as "wər," with a silent "e." "The" is pronounced as "ðə," with the voiced "th" sound. "Up" is pronounced as "ʌp," with the vowels "u" and "a" pronounced together. When combined, "were the up" is commonly used in sentences like "They were the up-and-coming stars of the team."