as in devised
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
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as in invented
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Recent Examples of trumped-up
Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 22 Nov. 2023
Erdogan’s government has thrown (or attempted to throw) a number of key political opponents into jail on what critics say are trumped-up, spurious charges.
—Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 10 May 2023
Verb
The charge was clearly trumped-up, but Yundi was immediately taken off all Chinese stages and media and prevented from going abroad.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 22 Nov. 2023
Erdogan’s government has thrown (or attempted to throw) a number of key political opponents into jail on what critics say are trumped-up, spurious charges.
—Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 10 May 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trumped-up
Verb
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Before the Frazier and Foreman fight was devised, former heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali was stripped of the title.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
Newsweek,
22 Mar. 2025
-
Price controls don’t work, whether they’re devised domestically or imported from abroad.—
Sally Pipes,
Forbes,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Martin replaced former Chief Keith Tomey, who was fired over misconduct allegations involving the misuse of a city vehicle, city firefighters playing in a charity softball game, and unproven claims of retaliatory behavior involving City Manager Terrence Moore.—
Steve Bousquet,
Sun Sentinel,
2 Aug. 2025
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Depth is the bigger question for TCU as the Horned Frogs are unproven and will need some younger players to step up.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
25 July 2025
Adjective
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Jones was charged with three felonies — theft of a credit card, criminal use of personal identification information, and fraudulent use of a credit card over two times within six months, the Tallahassee Democrat reported.—
Angel Saunders,
People.com,
8 Aug. 2025
-
Candidates flagged for fraudulent behavior had a 27% lower quality of hire than their honest peers, according to the same study.—
Michael Fitzsimmons,
Forbes.com,
8 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
As history tells it, hot chicken was invented by African American entrepreneur Thornton Prince, who founded Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack in the 1940s.—
Shimite Obialo,
Forbes,
21 Mar. 2025
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Elizabeth Olsen found inspiration for her role in The Assessment from a book that was based on a real-life group of people who believe aliens invented modern technology.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
People.com,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
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
Adjective
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At Comedy Central, Colbert rose to prominence playing a slightly exaggerated version of Bill O’Reilly and other unapologetically mendacious Fox News pundits from the George W. Bush years.—
Alan Sepinwall,
Rolling Stone,
18 July 2025
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The true story reveals both how freedom of speech first came to be conceived of as a mechanism for truth, an antidote to falsehood, and the foundation of all liberty—and that, ironically, this new and powerful theory was itself a deliberately mendacious fiction.—
Fara Dabhoiwala,
Harpers Magazine,
4 June 2025
Adjective
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That casting alone suggests these films aren't connected, but that remains unconfirmed.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
8 Aug. 2025
-
One side communicated a deal worth north of $40 million per year, but that claim remains unconfirmed because, again, nothing was officially written or drafted on that day.—
Nick Harris,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
4 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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One in seven pilots died in crashes, usually due to faulty, untested aircraft or poor visibility in changeable weather.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
20 July 2025
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But the move would be foolhardy for a largely untested navy.—
Kerry Brown,
Time,
29 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Trumped-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trumped-up. Accessed 19 Aug. 2025.
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