1
as in stopped
to bring (something) to a standstill
he drew up his horse outside the tavern
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in classified
to put into a particular arrangement
drew up the troops into a line along the ridge
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in prepared
to put (something) into proper and usually carefully worked out written form
draw up a proposal and submit it to the committee for approval
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of drew up
The Bulldogs drew up a play for Jake Heidbreder, who calmly drained an open 18-footer on the left baseline at the buzzer and was mobbed by students spilling out of the Save Mart Center stands.
—
Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Feb. 2026
After a timeout, the Tigers drew up a look for sharpshooter Jacob Crews, the Southeastern Conference’s 3-point leader, who drained it to give Mizzou a 72-71 lead with 18 seconds left.
—Pj Green, Kansas City Star, 20 Jan. 2026
The team huddled on the field, and the coach drew up a quarterback draw.
—Alanis Thames, Chicago Tribune, 20 Jan. 2026
There’s no way that’s what Mark Pope drew up, right?
—Lindsay Schnell, New York Times, 8 Jan. 2026
Defensive coordinator Jesse Minter drew up two first-quarter looks that sent completely unblocked rushers at Nix, and the Chargers twisted Denver’s offensive line around multiple times with exotic blitzes that sent rushers looping around to opposite gaps.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 7 Jan. 2026
Richard Simon and Max Schuster met with Lowell, then drew up plans to publish her memoir.
—Michael Waters, New Yorker, 3 Jan. 2026
Slow Food International’s collaboration with Visit Sacramento drew up to 165,000 people to SAFE Convention Center for three days of insightful panels, food and drink tastings and live music.
—Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 1 Jan. 2026
But Heat coach Erik Spoelstra drew up the perfect inbounds pass, as Andrew Wiggins used a back screen from Davion Mitchell and cut open to the basket.
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 11 Nov. 2025
Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Feb. 2026
After a timeout, the Tigers drew up a look for sharpshooter Jacob Crews, the Southeastern Conference’s 3-point leader, who drained it to give Mizzou a 72-71 lead with 18 seconds left.
—Pj Green, Kansas City Star, 20 Jan. 2026
The team huddled on the field, and the coach drew up a quarterback draw.
—Alanis Thames, Chicago Tribune, 20 Jan. 2026
There’s no way that’s what Mark Pope drew up, right?
—Lindsay Schnell, New York Times, 8 Jan. 2026
Defensive coordinator Jesse Minter drew up two first-quarter looks that sent completely unblocked rushers at Nix, and the Chargers twisted Denver’s offensive line around multiple times with exotic blitzes that sent rushers looping around to opposite gaps.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 7 Jan. 2026
Richard Simon and Max Schuster met with Lowell, then drew up plans to publish her memoir.
—Michael Waters, New Yorker, 3 Jan. 2026
Slow Food International’s collaboration with Visit Sacramento drew up to 165,000 people to SAFE Convention Center for three days of insightful panels, food and drink tastings and live music.
—Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 1 Jan. 2026
But Heat coach Erik Spoelstra drew up the perfect inbounds pass, as Andrew Wiggins used a back screen from Davion Mitchell and cut open to the basket.
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 11 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for drew up
Verb
-
That has not stopped him from being a frequent guest on cable and network television.—
Max Rego,
The Hill,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Only recently had many countries stopped treating solo female travelers as a problem to be managed, no longer refusing them hotel rooms when traveling without a man, or denying them credit cards to pay for it.—
Lilit Marcus,
CNN Money,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
An equal number of the baby foods in the study were classified as ultraprocessed foods, or UPFs.—
Sandee LaMotte,
CNN Money,
11 Feb. 2026
-
The Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART), signed by the two countries last week, includes a provision confirming that used clothing and textiles classified under HS 6309 qualify for preferential treatment under the Central America–Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR).—
Kate Nishimura,
Sourcing Journal,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Prioritize your safety by staying informed and prepared.—
Southern California Weather Report,
Daily News,
18 Feb. 2026
-
Residents were prepared with Ziploc bags full of change, and the runners would give Mardi Gras beads in return for money.—
Carlie Procell,
USA Today,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Federal agencies halted overdose-surveillance networks, delayed youth smoking data, scaled back food-safety pathogen monitoring and purged transgender health information from websites.—
Mike Stobbe,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Feb. 2026
-
Lumley said the progress of the bill halted in 2025 due to conflicts with some of the agricultural groups in the state.—
Cami Koons,
Iowa Capital Dispatch,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Alberdi is the rare filmmaker to enter the Berlinale with distribution for her film already arranged.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
14 Feb. 2026
-
The two feel fortunate their national Olympic committees arranged for them to bunk together at Cortina's Olympic village, since typically only teammates share housing.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The score was composed by Michael Sauter.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
13 Feb. 2026
-
Crew-12 is composed of NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev.—
Claire Cameron,
Scientific American,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
In his first playoff game, a thriller against the Los Angeles Rams, McMillan caught five passes for 81 yards, using his connection with quarterback Bryce Young to get the ball downfield.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
6 Feb. 2026
-
One month after the US carried out an attack in Venezuela to capture its president, civilians in the South American country remain caught between uncertainty and expectations of governmental change.—
CNN 9 hr ago,
CNN Money,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The documents revealed flirtatious emails between Wasserman and Ghislaine Maxwell and details of a 2002 flight Wasserman took to Africa on Epstein’s private plane, as part of a humanitarian trip organized by former President Bill Clinton.—
Hattie Lindert,
Pitchfork,
15 Feb. 2026
-
Gordon’s wife, Ann, and Newsom’s father organized elaborate adventures for the Gettys’ four sons and the Newsom children.—
Taryn Luna,
Los Angeles Times,
15 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Drew up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drew%20up. Accessed 18 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
