think up
phrasal verb
thought up; thinking up; thinks up
informal
: to use one's mind to form or invent (something)
Quick! We have to think up an excuse.
They thought up a new way of raising money for charity.
Examples of think up in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
This is something that has also been contested by critics, who say the extra charges on electric and heating bills are the result of state climate policies – the vast majority of which supported by or thought up by Healey.
—
Tim Dunn, Boston Herald, 23 Jan. 2026
The Black Manhattan does not follow this rule, because when Todd Smith thought up the cocktail in 2005, the rule hadn’t been invented yet.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 10 Jan. 2026
One of the team’s first breakout products was known as Project Tailwind, an AI notebook that senior product manager Raiza Martin thought up in her 20% time, Google’s longstanding practice of letting employees dedicate one day a week to a project of personal interest.
—Jennifer Elias, CNBC, 20 Dec. 2025
These tools can help parents with nearly anything, including thinking up recipes, creating shopping lists in seconds, and even suggesting healthier swaps kids might actually eat.
—Hannah Nwoko, Parents, 18 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for think up
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Tim Dunn, Boston Herald, 23 Jan. 2026
The Black Manhattan does not follow this rule, because when Todd Smith thought up the cocktail in 2005, the rule hadn’t been invented yet.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 10 Jan. 2026
One of the team’s first breakout products was known as Project Tailwind, an AI notebook that senior product manager Raiza Martin thought up in her 20% time, Google’s longstanding practice of letting employees dedicate one day a week to a project of personal interest.
—Jennifer Elias, CNBC, 20 Dec. 2025
These tools can help parents with nearly anything, including thinking up recipes, creating shopping lists in seconds, and even suggesting healthier swaps kids might actually eat.
—Hannah Nwoko, Parents, 18 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for think up
Cite this Entry
“Think up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/think%20up. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
