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
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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
Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Feb. 2026
Vietnam had an imaginary Gulf of Tonkin attack; Trump has made-up drug cartels.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 14 Jan. 2026
And there's not one right way to do it, considering the holiday is made-up and the real thing is just around the corner.
—Rachel Treisman, NPR, 19 Nov. 2025
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
Meghan O'Brien, NBC news, 19 Feb. 2026
In these squabbles, lies are told, stories are made up and the mantra that there are two sides to everything is proven false.
—Dave Lieber, Dallas Morning News, 19 Feb. 2026
The crews, made up of 15 foreign nationals, were taken into custody and referred to Iran’s judicial authorities, according to Iranian state media.
—Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 6 Feb. 2026
The archipelago off East Africa is made up of 115 different islands—including one that’s home to what’s perhaps the most photogenic beach in the world.
—Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 5 Feb. 2026
Ward and Kathryn Ausere, a sophomore chemical engineering major from Canton, made up the two-person team that earned silver in the two-way formation competition.
—Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 5 Feb. 2026
Movies made up just over 40% of the overall spend on both film and high-end TV in the UK last year.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 5 Feb. 2026
Cramer, in particular, praised Meta’s advertising business, which made up 97% of overall revenue for the quarter.
—Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 29 Jan. 2026
More than half of the state's overall revenue picture is made up of an ongoing sales and use tax, which saw a fiscal year-to-year decrease.
—Dominik Dausch, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, 29 Jan. 2026
Adjective
That story was 100 percent insane and made-up, and not a word of it is true.
—Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Feb. 2026
Vietnam had an imaginary Gulf of Tonkin attack; Trump has made-up drug cartels.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 14 Jan. 2026
And there's not one right way to do it, considering the holiday is made-up and the real thing is just around the corner.
—Rachel Treisman, NPR, 19 Nov. 2025
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
Verb
The city of Havana, made up of fewer than 300 people, came together to look for Robert.
—Meghan O'Brien, NBC news, 19 Feb. 2026
In these squabbles, lies are told, stories are made up and the mantra that there are two sides to everything is proven false.
—Dave Lieber, Dallas Morning News, 19 Feb. 2026
The crews, made up of 15 foreign nationals, were taken into custody and referred to Iran’s judicial authorities, according to Iranian state media.
—Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 6 Feb. 2026
The archipelago off East Africa is made up of 115 different islands—including one that’s home to what’s perhaps the most photogenic beach in the world.
—Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 5 Feb. 2026
Ward and Kathryn Ausere, a sophomore chemical engineering major from Canton, made up the two-person team that earned silver in the two-way formation competition.
—Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 5 Feb. 2026
Movies made up just over 40% of the overall spend on both film and high-end TV in the UK last year.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 5 Feb. 2026
Cramer, in particular, praised Meta’s advertising business, which made up 97% of overall revenue for the quarter.
—Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 29 Jan. 2026
More than half of the state's overall revenue picture is made up of an ongoing sales and use tax, which saw a fiscal year-to-year decrease.
—Dominik Dausch, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, 29 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for made-up
Adjective
-
Who wants to sit through a fictitious novelist’s clumsy drafts?—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Feb. 2026
-
The committee requested that information after a congressional watchdog found last December that the enhanced premium tax credits were vulnerable to fraud, with auditors successfully obtaining subsidized coverage for multiple ‘fictitious’ applicants.—
Sophie Brams,
The Hill,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Washington, however, was unanimously chosen as the first president under the Constitution in 1789 by presidential electors from each state, who comprised the Electoral College.—
Karissa Waddick,
USA Today,
16 Feb. 2026
-
The doc was made over six years and comprised footage shot by Nico Ballesteros, to whom Ye gave seemingly complete access, letting the young stranger film him for more than half a decade.—
Anna Peele,
Vanity Fair,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
After the village’s Plan Commission recommended in January against its original designs for building fences jutting into the lake from Centennial Beach, the Park District quickly devised two new options.—
Shun Graves,
Chicago Tribune,
23 Feb. 2026
-
The equal time rules were devised at a time when consumers had a limited number of media options.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The bathtub has a TV built into a mirror and amenities by Acqua di Parma, Tata Harper, and John Masters Organics.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
22 Feb. 2026
-
But while solar ordinances have grown rapidly, new counties are still allowing solar to be built.—
Suhail Bhat,
USA Today,
21 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Locate the two uppermost stars — Merak and Dubhe — and draw an imaginary line from the former through the latter and out into space.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
17 Feb. 2026
-
He's answered each with an instantly recognizable theme that helped cement these imaginary places in our brains.—
Alex Galbraith,
Entertainment Weekly,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
And the Cubists picked up on that in the twentieth century and abstracted from his landscapes, making pure Cubist constructions in which the optical space on the canvas—very similar to Cezanne’s—was composed of little abstract blocks.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Feb. 2026
-
Next-gen thin-film solar cells Kesterite is a naturally occurring mineral composed of copper, zinc, tin, and sulfur (CZTS).—
Chris Young,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Since the advent of TV and radio, public figures have concocted deliberate soundbites to stick out and persuade the public.—
Charles Trepany,
USA Today,
17 Feb. 2026
-
Paul Simon, who was headed to retirement amid debilitating hearing loss, has concocted a helpful new stage monitor setup that has him back on the road.—
BRIAN MCCOLLUM,
Freep.com,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Our very own Karissa Waddick talked to Ricker about the time capsule and how all 50 states will contribute to it, where it will be placed and how it'll be constructed to keep its contents safe for a quarter-millennium.—
Phaedra Trethan,
USA Today,
27 Feb. 2026
-
That building was constructed in 1986, which was before Hurricane Andrew struck and subsequently spurred stricter building codes.—
Abigail Hasebroock,
Sun Sentinel,
27 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Made-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/made-up. Accessed 1 Mar. 2026.
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