MAKING UP Synonyms: 131 Similar and Opposite Words

making up

verb

present participle of make up

as in comprising

to be all the substance of the book is made up of 20 chapters

Synonyms & Similar Words

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as in devising

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

as in building

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 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 making up She was later wrongfully accused of making up the allegations and fired, while Durrah maintained his employment with the department, Tillman claimed in her complaint. — Amber Gaudet updated August 20, Charlotte Observer, 20 Aug. 2026 Consumer payments and subscriptions remain the core of the business, contributing 85% to 90% of revenue across the forecast period, with subscriptions already making up 60% to 70% of viewer spend. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 6 Aug. 2026 From female directors making up 18-19 percent of film production to more than 30 percent. — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 23 July 2026 Medicaid now covers families making up to 138% of the federal poverty level. — Nick Coltrain, Denver Post, 25 June 2026 Congress has to keep making up the gap with general taxpayer funds. — Camila Domonoske, NPR, 28 May 2026 The timing of the hearing, coming less than three weeks before the primary election, throws a spotlight on the scandal just as voters are making up their minds. — Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 14 May 2026 So far this year through April 19, 29 of the city’s 201 shooting victims have been under 18 making up 14% of the victims, according to the NYPD. — Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 30 Apr. 2026 Businesses run by women are beginning to dominate the state’s economy, making up 40% statewide. — Tribune News Service, Baltimore Sun, 16 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for making up

Verb

For Finite, Nuclear Children joins a slate comprising original series and adaptations of plays, operas and literary texts.

— Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 26 Aug. 2026
Additionally, no Americans advanced, despite comprising seven of the 32 players in the field.

— Lev Akabas, Sportico.com, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of comprising

Verb

Now, researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have thwarted that tyranny even more profoundly, by devising an ultra-fast way to steer light, using light itself as the steering wheel.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 20 Aug. 2026
Now Iran’s hardline leadership is devising and promoting its own strategy for continued confrontation with Washington.

— Tim Lister, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of devising

Verb

Investors have fretted that Nvidia's growth has been driven by a handful of large technology companies called hyperscalers, which are building out data centers that end up largely serving a few frontier labs such as OpenAI.

— Kif Leswing, CNBC, 27 Aug. 2026
The real work is building relationships with sponsors, serving your community, speaking to thousands of people, representing a brand professionally, and showing up consistently.

— Tabitha Parent, PEOPLE, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of building

Verb

Asante draws a manufacturing analogy—with some exaggeration—arguing that previous nuclear power plants were built bespoke, akin to constructing an entire factory to produce a single car.

— Jordan Blum, Fortune, 29 Aug. 2026
Mendoza, of the Philippine Tennis Association, told me that new public courts are being built around the country, and the government is constructing a new national tennis center.

— Albert Samaha, New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of constructing

Verb

His great-great-grandfather, Antonio Cansino, was widely credited with inventing modern-day Spanish dance.

— Hannah Vanbiber, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026
Whether inventing the Bong-a-Tron or freeing themselves after hours trapped inside a Party City parking lot, these misadventures almost always hinge on weed.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of inventing

Verb

The team highlighted that the NSWC Corona controls and ships gages to the defense industrial base partners responsible for manufacturing and assembling the Trident missile.

— Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 26 Aug. 2026
After heeding the call for volunteers and spent the next year assembling a team of family and students to capture the Great American Eclipse of 2024.

— Anthony Wood, Space.com, 26 Aug. 2026