as in to devise
to create or think of by clever use of the imagination
parents who were always trumping up little projects for their children to do around the house
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 trump up
Although the woman-alien’s powers were trumped up to comedic effect, Estelle could not help but see that beneath its B-movie veneer, Devil Girl from Mars tapped into a looming anxiety that was palpable all around.
—
Literary Hub, 19 Aug. 2025
His defense team and supporters say the secondment was all aboveboard and ordered by his superiors, and that the allegations are trumped up and political.
—Alexander Smith, NBC news, 19 July 2025
Activist groups say the charges against him were trumped up.
—Gabe Levin, Los Angeles Times, 16 June 2025
Yes, his relationship with alcohol seems to be not great and complicated, but these charges still seem trumped up to me.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 11 June 2025
In their response, Petrova’s attorneys accused the government of trumping up criminal charges in a bid to prevent her bail and motions from being heard in federal court.
—Lauren Mascarenhas, CNN Money, 28 May 2025
And, while the charges were most likely trumped up, the city’s leaders were correct about one thing: Young people are highly suggestible.
—Patricia Schultheis, Baltimore Sun, 11 May 2025
The work was banned by the Malian Ministry of Culture and Cissé was arrested and jailed on trumped up charges of accepting French funding.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 20 Feb. 2025
Human rights groups and some Western countries have accused Iran of trying to win concessions from other nations through arrests on security charges that may have been trumped up.
—Fox News, 19 Feb. 2025
Literary Hub, 19 Aug. 2025
His defense team and supporters say the secondment was all aboveboard and ordered by his superiors, and that the allegations are trumped up and political.
—Alexander Smith, NBC news, 19 July 2025
Activist groups say the charges against him were trumped up.
—Gabe Levin, Los Angeles Times, 16 June 2025
Yes, his relationship with alcohol seems to be not great and complicated, but these charges still seem trumped up to me.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 11 June 2025
In their response, Petrova’s attorneys accused the government of trumping up criminal charges in a bid to prevent her bail and motions from being heard in federal court.
—Lauren Mascarenhas, CNN Money, 28 May 2025
And, while the charges were most likely trumped up, the city’s leaders were correct about one thing: Young people are highly suggestible.
—Patricia Schultheis, Baltimore Sun, 11 May 2025
The work was banned by the Malian Ministry of Culture and Cissé was arrested and jailed on trumped up charges of accepting French funding.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 20 Feb. 2025
Human rights groups and some Western countries have accused Iran of trying to win concessions from other nations through arrests on security charges that may have been trumped up.
—Fox News, 19 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trump up
Verb
-
Laws governing the use of AI should be devised in a Goldilocks manner.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
-
While creatives have historically devised and illustrated their ideas, using tech tools like Photoshop to fine-tune them, the script appears to have flipped — with AI starting the process and humans perfecting the final product.—
semafor.com,
semafor.com,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The district plans to begin constructing the canals in 2026, and is looking for a developer to partner in the project, Alanis said.—
Harrison Mantas,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
9 Sep. 2025
-
The building that houses it was constructed in the 1940s; quirky designs abound inside, as do low ceilings and claustrophobic layouts.—
Annabelle Dufraigne,
Architectural Digest,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
To solve this problem, materials scientists at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore have concocted a new sunscreen recipe that spares the ocean’s vital microorganisms.—
Andrew Paul,
Popular Science,
4 Sep. 2025
-
Not only is the kitchen fully on display but a separate alcove is given over to his highly technical lab, a play space dedicated to fermentation, aging, preserving and otherwise concocting.—
Ann Abel,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Yet, bizarrely, the TV show undercuts this angle by inventing a serial killer nurse from whole cloth, a move that shifts the blame away from systemic forces and toward a motiveless scoundrel.—
Graham Hillard,
The Washington Examiner,
5 Sep. 2025
-
And long before movie night was a thing, Mesoamericans apparently invented popcorn, too.—
SAVEUR Editors,
Saveur,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
To protest it, a contingent of more than fifty Democrats in the Texas House had fled the state, delaying the vote and drumming up national interest.—
Rachel Monroe,
New Yorker,
2 Sep. 2025
-
However, some outlets have reported that the pair's apparent romantic connection was a calculated strategy to drum up interest in the action-comedy and drive ticket sales.—
Ashley Hume,
FOXNews.com,
30 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Trump up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trump%20up. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share