MADE-UP Synonyms: 197 Similar and Opposite Words

made-up 1 of 2

adjective

ˈmād-ˈəp

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

made up

2 of 2

verb

past tense of make up

as in comprised

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

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 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 made-up

Adjective

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 Telling lies to appease a user even if a false or made-up answer is provided. —

Lance Eliot, Forbes, 16 Sep. 2024 But to pursue a state of purity—even a fictional one; even a made-up, obviously impure one—still feels righteous. —

Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 26 Aug. 2024 Not long after that, the reader’s manager started reprimanding Autumn Leaves 523 for humming, misdirecting a package, and other minor or made-up infractions. —

Karla Miller, Washington Post, 11 Apr. 2024 Her mother Dee Dee Blanchard lived with Munchausen syndrome by proxy, a psychological disorder in which parents or caregivers seek sympathy through the exaggerated or made-up illnesses of their children. —

Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 28 Dec. 2023 Under the visage of the monster he was made-up to be, shined the kindest of spirits. —

Ingrid Vasquez, Peoplemag, 14 Dec. 2023 Clad in a bright matching jumpsuit, blonde hair wrapped delicately in a chic scarf and face made-up proper, donning oversized sunglasses, her charisma is on full display. —

Holly Jones, Variety, 15 Oct. 2023 Gorgeously made-up, with earrings, necklaces, bracelets, rings, a corset, and a cloak, Inanna set forth. —

Matthew Gavin Frank, Harper's Magazine, 11 Aug. 2022

Recent Examples of Synonyms for made-up

Adjective

Created by Chris Romano and Eric Falconer, who also are believed to be back for the sequel, Blue Mountain State is about a fictitious university, Blue Mountain State, and its football team, the Mountain Goats.

— Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 17 Feb. 2025
Last month, its editor revealed that A.I. had been used to tweak the Hungarian accents of its stars, Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones, and to create fictitious architectural plans and buildings for the closing retrospective of the main character’s career.

— Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 6 Feb. 2025