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"
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of made-up
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
Canons are as made-up as the stories that are part of them, so Dark Forces still has value as part of an old continuity that remains fun and quite wacky at times.
—Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 7 Mar. 2025
According to Jackson, our completely made-up (but almost certainly accurate) mythology for the ABC sudser isn’t necessarily dead in the water.
—Claire Franken, TVLine, 4 Mar. 2025
To answer these questions, a group of 15 participants made-up of university students, recent graduates, and young adults, played the four online games mentioned—Valorant, Counter-Strike 2, Overwatch 2, and Fortnite.
—Mia Taylor, Parents, 16 Jan. 2025
Liza Esquibias, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2025
Near 51st Avenue and McDowell Road, a line of about 30 people formed outside Abel Mortuary Funeral Services, made up of those closest to 16-year-old Montoya before he was killed in late August.
—Rey Covarrubias Jr, AZCentral.com, 6 Sep. 2025
One such robot, able to grab and stack plastic bricks using a custom claw, was built by The Clueless, a team made up of students from different high schools.
—Kelly Davis, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Aug. 2025
Canadians made up about 28% of total international visitor arrivals in 2024.
—Natasha Chen, CNN Money, 31 Aug. 2025
Hundreds of protestors made up of largely of local political and grass-root groups, and a smattering of accredited festival guests, marched across the Venice Lido on Saturday in support of Palestine and to denounce Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 31 Aug. 2025
Black Hoosiers, the second-largest racial group behind white Hoosiers, made up less than one-third of the district.
—Alexandra Kukulka, Chicago Tribune, 31 Aug. 2025
At the time, Black people made up 67% of the city’s population.
—Richard A. Webster, ProPublica, 25 Aug. 2025
The Enquirer identified four gangs of Chilean nationals and a fifth gang made up of at least two Colombians, all believed to be part of the ring.
—Bebe Hodges, The Enquirer, 25 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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
Canons are as made-up as the stories that are part of them, so Dark Forces still has value as part of an old continuity that remains fun and quite wacky at times.
—Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 7 Mar. 2025
According to Jackson, our completely made-up (but almost certainly accurate) mythology for the ABC sudser isn’t necessarily dead in the water.
—Claire Franken, TVLine, 4 Mar. 2025
To answer these questions, a group of 15 participants made-up of university students, recent graduates, and young adults, played the four online games mentioned—Valorant, Counter-Strike 2, Overwatch 2, and Fortnite.
—Mia Taylor, Parents, 16 Jan. 2025
Verb
This year, Wever, Alexander and Christie made up three of Severance’s many nominations, which garnered 27 across the series.
—Liza Esquibias, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2025
Near 51st Avenue and McDowell Road, a line of about 30 people formed outside Abel Mortuary Funeral Services, made up of those closest to 16-year-old Montoya before he was killed in late August.
—Rey Covarrubias Jr, AZCentral.com, 6 Sep. 2025
One such robot, able to grab and stack plastic bricks using a custom claw, was built by The Clueless, a team made up of students from different high schools.
—Kelly Davis, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Aug. 2025
Canadians made up about 28% of total international visitor arrivals in 2024.
—Natasha Chen, CNN Money, 31 Aug. 2025
Hundreds of protestors made up of largely of local political and grass-root groups, and a smattering of accredited festival guests, marched across the Venice Lido on Saturday in support of Palestine and to denounce Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 31 Aug. 2025
Black Hoosiers, the second-largest racial group behind white Hoosiers, made up less than one-third of the district.
—Alexandra Kukulka, Chicago Tribune, 31 Aug. 2025
At the time, Black people made up 67% of the city’s population.
—Richard A. Webster, ProPublica, 25 Aug. 2025
The Enquirer identified four gangs of Chilean nationals and a fifth gang made up of at least two Colombians, all believed to be part of the ring.
—Bebe Hodges, The Enquirer, 25 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for made-up
Adjective
-
The mockumentary about a fictitious paper company in Scranton, Pennsylvania aired from 2005 to 2013.—
Lisa Respers France,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The bad news about this fictitious mountainside hole-in-the-wall?—
Tim McGovern,
PEOPLE,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Burroughs’s donors comprised real estate investment, holdings and development organizations and business development investors, among other organizations.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
11 Sep. 2025
-
These smaller listings have comprised an essential part of Nasdaq’s IPOs over the past several years, and the impact of the new rules, if adopted, could be disruptive to many companies currently preparing to go public, as well as the investment banks and advisory firms that work with them.—
Drew Bernstein,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Subsequent reports revealed that Bolsonaro and his allies had devised a baroque plot to regain power, which included jailing and possibly murdering their political opponents.—
Jon Lee Anderson,
New Yorker,
10 Sep. 2025
-
The sum seems devised by the author to test Isabella and find her out.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The day after Kirk’s murder, his supporters gathered at Turning Point USA’s headquarters in Phoenix to pay their respects to the man who built a movement.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
-
During that time, 21,529,464 examples were produced, more than any other automotive nameplate except the Toyota Corolla, which was built on many unrelated platforms as a Corolla in name only.—
Robert Ross,
Robb Report,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Steve Young lifts his arm, holding an imaginary football, preparing to throw.—
Seth Wickersham,
The Atlantic,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Moreover, her five-letter titles refer to satellite navigation waypoints and fixes for aircraft flying in clouds or at night, that offer passage to imaginary locations defined by the interception of magnetic vectors drawn from the earth’s poles.—
Natasha Gural,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The rover’s science instruments found that the formation’s sedimentary rocks are composed of clay and silt, which, on Earth, are excellent preservers of past microbial life.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Nine Inch Nails composed the soundtrack.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
11 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
-
On paper, Dallas has the tools to do just that, but NBA insider Zach Buckley, of Bleacher Report, has concocted a trade proposal that sees the Mavericks strengthen their forward position.—
Ricardo Klein,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Halara Flex Sweatpant Jeans With Pockets Teens love wearing these Halara sweatpant jeans, which are constructed from a four-way stretch denim material that is incredibly soft and breathable.—
Jacquelyn Smith,
Parents,
11 Sep. 2025
-
In fact, the apartment building was designed by Eiffel himself and was initially constructed to house those who were working on the iconic landmark’s construction.—
Madeline Weinfield,
Architectural Digest,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Made-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/made-up. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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