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
Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 4 Mar. 2026
Cook said his team detected a variety of age manipulation: synthetic fraud, in which real, stolen and made-up information is used to create a new identity; identity fraud; and document fraud.
—Nick Penzenstadler, USA Today, 13 Feb. 2026
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
Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 8 May 2026
His district currently is made up of nearly 50% Black voters and provided a greater than 60% vote for Democrat Kamala Harris in 2024 presidential election.
—Travis Loller, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2026
Fitbit made up about 6% of the global wristband market in 2025, followed by Whoop at 2%, according to data from IDC.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 7 May 2026
After a five-month, 120-game regular season featuring record crowds, women’s hockey enjoying a significant post-Olympic boost and with more expansion on the horizon, the Walter Cup playoff semifinalists are made up exclusively of the league’s old guard.
—John Wawrow, Twin Cities, 30 Apr. 2026
The game will be made up on Thursday as part of a split doubleheader.
—Laura Fay, CBS News, 29 Apr. 2026
The guidelines were approved last year by a controversial German church governing body made up of the German bishops’ conference and a Catholic lay group that has been working to have a greater say in church decision-making.
—Nicole Winfield, Fortune, 23 Apr. 2026
Very typical of the better Orange County public-school baseball teams, the Orange roster is made up of players who have experienced ups and downs as teammates for a long time.
—Steve Fryer, Oc Register, 23 Apr. 2026
Dreamy beds are made up with covetable Rivolta Carmignani linens.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Adjective
During his interview, Newsom spoke about his ongoing and very public feud with Trump, who received the inaugural (and made-up) FIFA Peace Prize in December.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 4 Mar. 2026
Cook said his team detected a variety of age manipulation: synthetic fraud, in which real, stolen and made-up information is used to create a new identity; identity fraud; and document fraud.
—Nick Penzenstadler, USA Today, 13 Feb. 2026
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
Verb
Regardless, much of the developing world is made up of much younger countries, with populations in Africa, for example, at much lower risk of serious outcomes from COVID-19 than elderly individuals with comorbidities in the United States or Western Europe.
—Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 8 May 2026
His district currently is made up of nearly 50% Black voters and provided a greater than 60% vote for Democrat Kamala Harris in 2024 presidential election.
—Travis Loller, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2026
Fitbit made up about 6% of the global wristband market in 2025, followed by Whoop at 2%, according to data from IDC.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 7 May 2026
After a five-month, 120-game regular season featuring record crowds, women’s hockey enjoying a significant post-Olympic boost and with more expansion on the horizon, the Walter Cup playoff semifinalists are made up exclusively of the league’s old guard.
—John Wawrow, Twin Cities, 30 Apr. 2026
The game will be made up on Thursday as part of a split doubleheader.
—Laura Fay, CBS News, 29 Apr. 2026
The guidelines were approved last year by a controversial German church governing body made up of the German bishops’ conference and a Catholic lay group that has been working to have a greater say in church decision-making.
—Nicole Winfield, Fortune, 23 Apr. 2026
Very typical of the better Orange County public-school baseball teams, the Orange roster is made up of players who have experienced ups and downs as teammates for a long time.
—Steve Fryer, Oc Register, 23 Apr. 2026
Dreamy beds are made up with covetable Rivolta Carmignani linens.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for made-up
Adjective
-
First, Jones submitted fraudulent expense reimbursement requests for fictitious business expenses.—
Irene Wright,
USA Today,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Investigators say the monthly payroll expenses and the number of employees were fictitious and that the documents used to support the monthly income for the companies were false.—
Joseph Buczek,
CBS News,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The suited style was comprised of a tuxedo, bowtie and cummerbund.—
Julia Teti,
Footwear News,
9 May 2026
-
This open architecture system is comprised of multifunction control consoles and Remote Terminal Units (RTU).—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
9 May 2026
Verb
-
Recently, the field has experienced a sort of renaissance as researchers — many of them astrophysics refugees like Dwyer — have devised new ways to pierce the clouds.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
6 May 2026
-
Meade, who at the time was eight years into a minimum 10-year prison sentence, devised a plan with co-conspirator Nicholas Umphenour to coordinate his escape from custody.—
Alex Brizee,
Idaho Statesman,
5 May 2026
Verb
-
The batteries inside utility-scale storage facilities are built to far stricter standards, sited under the most rigorous fire code in the country, and monitored 24/7.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
10 May 2026
-
In our case, the water tank for the toilet flush was built into this metal support frame.—
Tim Carter,
Hartford Courant,
9 May 2026
Adjective
-
To find Hydra, first locate the bright stars Chertan and Regulus in the constellation Leo and draw an imaginary line from the former to the latter, extending 20 degrees into open space.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
9 May 2026
-
Artists in the 18th century would often include a person of color, who would sometimes be imaginary, in their portraits of wealthy white sitters to embellish the painting and highlight the high status of the main subject, according to the researchers.—
Amarachi Orie,
CNN Money,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
Something composed of water ice will deform more easily than an object made of iron, for example, and for both to be round, their sizes will be wildly different.—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
8 May 2026
-
Whether you’re headed to Pilates or running weekend errands, this look feels especially right now, composed of Leset’s V-neck white tee, Nili Lotan’s roomy red barn jacket, and a pair of Adidas x Wales Bonner sneakers.—
Laura Jackson,
Vogue,
7 May 2026
Verb
-
Cocktails are concocted by in-house mixologist, Waguinho, who also invites guests from the local mixology community to arrange tastings.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
7 May 2026
-
For decades, astronomers have concocted intricate computer models to predict how stars live and die.—
Paul Sutter,
Space.com,
3 May 2026
Verb
-
Then with five seconds to go before intermission, Watts found the back of the net as Notre Dame constructed an 8-7 lead at the break.—
Brendan Connelly,
Boston Herald,
9 May 2026
-
The venue was a casually magnificent stone building, constructed in the fifteenth century as a Dominican convent, on a promontory overlooking a sparkling bay.—
Andrew Marantz,
New Yorker,
9 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Made-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/made-up. Accessed 11 May. 2026.
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