DRUMS UP Synonyms: 40 Similar and Opposite Words

drums up

verb

present tense third-person singular of drum up

as in devises

to create or think of by clever use of the imagination anyone who drums up a better way of doing this tedious task will make a fortune

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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 drums up Randy Newman’s score even drums up a rousing Viking chant. — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2026 Schanelec drums up this particular time period with such focus on the moving parts that we are left knowing that change is the only constant. — Sophie Monks Kaufman, IndieWire, 17 Feb. 2026 As Walmart’s online business drums up more revenue from home deliveries, advertising and commissions from sellers on its third-party marketplace, e-commerce has become a profitable business. — Melissa Repko, CNBC, 21 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for drums up

Verb

The British-American actress plays Hannah, a music student who devises a fake dating scheme with hockey star Garrett (Belmont Cameli) to catch the attention of her crush, Justin (Josh Heuston).

— Catherine Santino, PEOPLE, 16 July 2026
Six men are eaten by the Cyclops before Odysseus devises a plan to escape from the cave they are trapped in.

— Gitanjali Roy, Encyclopedia Britannica, 12 June 2026

Definition of devises

Verb

The Yale startup, which constructs quantum computers, was acquired in January for $550 million by D-Wave, a leading quantum business based in Palo Alto, Calif.

— P.R. Lockhart, Hartford Courant, 22 June 2026
The mRNA is then read by a piece of molecular machinery called the ribosome, which constructs the protein — a process called translation.

— Philip Ball, Quanta Magazine, 18 June 2026

Definition of constructs

Verb

Driver’s character concocts a way for the duo to start an environmental business together as Russians, largely the mafia, are involved in recalibrating a canal in New York City.

— Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 17 May 2026
The bleak tortures Ohm concocts for his characters are as vile as the Bilberry’s fetid jacuzzi.

— Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026

Definition of concocts

Verb

An engineering prodigy, Harley has to get creative to survive her large family, and invents a number of gizmos and gadgets to help improve her chaotic household.

— Christian Holub, Entertainment Weekly, 21 June 2026
Without it, the AI invents a new backdrop.

— Erica Browne Grivas, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 June 2026

Definition of invents

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drumsticks

drums up

drum up

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“Drums up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drums%20up. Accessed 22 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of drums up

verb

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