as in fictitious
not real and existing only in the imagination
the bogeyman was one of those made-up monsters whose sole purpose was to threaten children
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in comprised
to be all the substance of
the book is made up of 20 chapters
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in devised
to create or think of by clever use of the imagination
she keeps making up excuses as to why she hasn't yet finished the project
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in built
to form by putting together parts or materials
we'll have to make up the bookcase, which came in a box marked "some assembly required"
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of made-up
Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2025
Because a lot of things on reality TV are made-up situations and scenarios to provoke reactions and all of that stuff.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 2 Aug. 2025
Something more insidious is at play with all of the half-baked or made-up statistics.
—Lisa Jarvis, Mercury News, 6 June 2025
The irony is that it is accepted that the tabloids found in the grocery store checkout aisle are often made-up or greatly exaggerated.
—Peter Suciu, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025
American agricultural products once made-up 40 percent of China's market; that amount has fallen below 20 percent.
—John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025
Canons are as made-up as the stories that are part of them, so Dark Forces still has value as part of an old continuity that remains fun and quite wacky at times.
—Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 7 Mar. 2025
According to Jackson, our completely made-up (but almost certainly accurate) mythology for the ABC sudser isn’t necessarily dead in the water.
—Claire Franken, TVLine, 4 Mar. 2025
To answer these questions, a group of 15 participants made-up of university students, recent graduates, and young adults, played the four online games mentioned—Valorant, Counter-Strike 2, Overwatch 2, and Fortnite.
—Mia Taylor, Parents, 16 Jan. 2025
Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 27 Sep. 2025
But in recent weeks and months, parents are arriving at the delivery room with their minds made up.
—Edith Bracho-Sanchez, CNN Money, 26 Sep. 2025
Rooting them on Most of the giant sequoia’s root system is made up of tiny, threadlike feeders that spread out from the larger roots near the trunk.
—Kurt Snibbe, Oc Register, 20 Sep. 2025
The region is made up of 22 volcanic islands that sit in the southern Atlantic Ocean near Antarctica and are a British Overseas Territory.
—Hollie Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Sep. 2025
People adjusted their pava hats and clip-on flor de maga flowers, Puerto Rican symbols that made up the evening’s implicit dress code.
—Valerie Trapp, The Atlantic, 20 Sep. 2025
In that year, transportation made up about 17% of total expenditures.
—Ana Teresa Solá, CNBC, 20 Sep. 2025
This year, Wever, Alexander and Christie made up three of Severance’s many nominations, which garnered 27 across the series.
—Liza Esquibias, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2025
Near 51st Avenue and McDowell Road, a line of about 30 people formed outside Abel Mortuary Funeral Services, made up of those closest to 16-year-old Montoya before he was killed in late August.
—Rey Covarrubias Jr, AZCentral.com, 6 Sep. 2025
Adjective
And while OpenAI’s defenders could chalk that up to an isolated or even made-up incident, within 24 hours of the GPT-5 launch Altman was doing damage control, seemingly caught of guard by the bad reception.
—Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2025
Because a lot of things on reality TV are made-up situations and scenarios to provoke reactions and all of that stuff.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 2 Aug. 2025
Something more insidious is at play with all of the half-baked or made-up statistics.
—Lisa Jarvis, Mercury News, 6 June 2025
The irony is that it is accepted that the tabloids found in the grocery store checkout aisle are often made-up or greatly exaggerated.
—Peter Suciu, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025
American agricultural products once made-up 40 percent of China's market; that amount has fallen below 20 percent.
—John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025
Canons are as made-up as the stories that are part of them, so Dark Forces still has value as part of an old continuity that remains fun and quite wacky at times.
—Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 7 Mar. 2025
According to Jackson, our completely made-up (but almost certainly accurate) mythology for the ABC sudser isn’t necessarily dead in the water.
—Claire Franken, TVLine, 4 Mar. 2025
To answer these questions, a group of 15 participants made-up of university students, recent graduates, and young adults, played the four online games mentioned—Valorant, Counter-Strike 2, Overwatch 2, and Fortnite.
—Mia Taylor, Parents, 16 Jan. 2025
Verb
That means that, of those moving to Colorado, millennials made up the largest percentage when compared to other states.
—Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 27 Sep. 2025
But in recent weeks and months, parents are arriving at the delivery room with their minds made up.
—Edith Bracho-Sanchez, CNN Money, 26 Sep. 2025
Rooting them on Most of the giant sequoia’s root system is made up of tiny, threadlike feeders that spread out from the larger roots near the trunk.
—Kurt Snibbe, Oc Register, 20 Sep. 2025
The region is made up of 22 volcanic islands that sit in the southern Atlantic Ocean near Antarctica and are a British Overseas Territory.
—Hollie Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Sep. 2025
People adjusted their pava hats and clip-on flor de maga flowers, Puerto Rican symbols that made up the evening’s implicit dress code.
—Valerie Trapp, The Atlantic, 20 Sep. 2025
In that year, transportation made up about 17% of total expenditures.
—Ana Teresa Solá, CNBC, 20 Sep. 2025
This year, Wever, Alexander and Christie made up three of Severance’s many nominations, which garnered 27 across the series.
—Liza Esquibias, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2025
Near 51st Avenue and McDowell Road, a line of about 30 people formed outside Abel Mortuary Funeral Services, made up of those closest to 16-year-old Montoya before he was killed in late August.
—Rey Covarrubias Jr, AZCentral.com, 6 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for made-up
Adjective
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Garcia-Hernandez allegedly has convictions for giving fictitious information, evading arrest, driving while intoxicated and fleeing police.—
Lauren Villagran,
USA Today,
26 Sep. 2025
-
Supervisors Janet Nguyen and Don Wagner raised concerns at the board’s Tuesday meeting about fictitious registrations following recent news of a dog that was registered to vote in two recent state elections and a lawsuit by the federal government over noncitizen voter records.—
Claire Wang,
Oc Register,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The New Currents jury comprised film critic Jessica Kiang, Georgian filmmaker Alexandre Koberidze and South Korean director Oh Seung Uk.—
Liz Shackleton,
Deadline,
26 Sep. 2025
-
Complex relationships Graphs in Lai’s model comprised nodes and edges.—
Jacek Krywko,
ArsTechnica,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The master bedroom is drenched in Dulux Heritage’s Biscuit Beige for maximum warmth, and the bed was crafted by a local joiner before being painted by William Sutherland, one of the estate’s members, using folkloric stencils devised by resident designer, Bethany Evans.—
Chloe Frost-Smith,
Vogue,
24 Sep. 2025
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Martínez, however, theorizes that Cleopatra may have devised a secret alternative plan for her burial with Antony so that the Romans would not find their bodies.—
Toria Sheffield,
PEOPLE,
21 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Indeed, this has been a long time coming for Floresca, who built a business as an eveningwear and bridal designer.—
James Factora,
Them.,
26 Sep. 2025
-
Martínez zeroed in on the ruins of the large temple of Taposiris Magna, located in what’s now the town of Borg El Arab, despite the fact that there was no information about which deity the temple was for or who built it.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
26 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The real audience would hear the imaginary audience booing and jeering.—
Lauren Rothery,
Harpers Magazine,
19 Sep. 2025
-
Once there was an imaginary line that mustn’t be crossed.—
Lars Brandle,
Billboard,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The chief of staff of one of Kyiv’s volunteer formation legions, Andriy, whose call-sign is Stolyar, said his unit is composed of people from all walks of life – from construction workers to businessmen to poets.—
Daria Tarasova-Markina,
CNN Money,
25 Sep. 2025
-
What feels strangely compelling is how ZUTOMAYO’s music is composed of a combination of extremely complex elements.—
Billboard Japan,
Billboard,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Swartz concocted this massive blockbuster trade idea, which sends Brown to his hometown team, the Atlanta Hawks.—
Ricardo Klein,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Sep. 2025
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Prosecutors and defense attorneys were scheduled to begin opening arguments on whether the death of a 7-year-old girl in February 2017 was a medical tragedy or the result of a murder plot concocted by her father — a former Phoenix police detective — and his Australian wife.—
Perry Vandell,
AZCentral.com,
22 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The contestants come out wearing their final looks, and Michael Kors says that everyone’s collections were thoughtful and well-constructed, and then the judging begins.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
26 Sep. 2025
-
Let’s bulldoze the obstacle course the insurance companies constructed and create federal guardrails to protect patients over needless denials.—
Dr. Nicholas Cozzi,
Time,
25 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Made-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/made-up. Accessed 29 Sep. 2025.
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