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
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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
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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
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Recent Examples of made-up
Rachel Treisman, NPR, 19 Nov. 2025
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
Hayley Cuccinello, CNBC, 16 Jan. 2026
White victims made up about 26%, Hispanic victims accounted for 17%, and Asian and Pacific Islander victims represented about 6% of the total number of those who were killed.
—Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 15 Jan. 2026
Advanced chips of 7 nanometers or smaller made up more than three-quarters of wafer revenue, underscoring how central cutting-edge AI processors have become to TSMC’s business.
—Sharon Goldman, Fortune, 15 Jan. 2026
At time time of his interview with FN, 64 percent chose the latter answer — but his audience is largely made up of the straight male audience typically associated with sneaker culture.
—Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 15 Jan. 2026
Last year, the first that the tournament expanded to 12 teams, an eight seed and seven seed made up the championship game.
—American-Statesman Staff, Austin American Statesman, 10 Jan. 2026
Her second ensemble consisted of a chic suit with a fur collar, while her third bridal look was made up of an understated satin and chiffon dress with a mid-calf hem.
—Nicole Briese, PEOPLE, 8 Nov. 2025
This annex of the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum is made up of two hangars filled with thousands of space and air objects.
—Iona Brannon, Travel + Leisure, 8 Nov. 2025
The Overland Park City Council is made up of the mayor and 12 members, with two members representing six wards.
—Taylor O'Connor, Kansas City Star, 25 Oct. 2025
Adjective
And there's not one right way to do it, considering the holiday is made-up and the real thing is just around the corner.
—Verb
Residential properties made up just under a third of the average family office's real estate holdings, per the same report.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for made-up
Adjective
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Anyone who’s survived to 2026 knows the upper class’ fictitious fantasies still carry real, wretched consequences for the rest of us, but Season 4 plays out those ongoing scenarios to the nth degree, while condensing them into an appreciable narrative arc.—
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The series, which premiered on Netflix at the end of 2024, tells the story of the Buendía family over multiple generations and is set in the fictitious town of Macondo, Colombia, which the family founded.—
Verb
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The teams comprised veteran baseball stars from both nations.—
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The leather shoes comprised a mix of male boots, children’s and women’s shoes.—
Verb
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Outside of the theory itself being devised by conscious humans using their brains, there’s scant reason to think so.—
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Trump has instead engaged in a clumsy cover-up, insisting that the files are both a fantastical hoax devised by his enemies and also too boring to even merit discussion.—
Verb
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Today’s pairs are built for all conditions, designed to carry you through long days without blisters or fuss, while still looking effortless.—
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Our country is built on immigrants.—
Adjective
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Under the noonday sun while fishing, or stealing light from the full moon, the point of his pencil traced the imaginary movements of the washers, threads, coil springs, cylinders, bolts, and screws that had long enriched the workings of his mind.—
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Torgashev dropped an imaginary microphone for his ending pose, then doubled over before dropping to a knee as the crowd rose to its feet.—
Verb
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The brain is composed mainly of fat, including omega-3 fatty acids and cholesterol, which are essential for maintaining brain cell structure and function.—
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Produced by Cate Le Bon and composed by the band inside studios owned by Jeff Tweedy and Gilla Band, Secret Love would be a return to form, but Dry Cleaning never fell out of shape in the first place.—
Verb
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In exchange for not being charged with a DUI, the family’s lawyer concocted a deal in which Skakel was sent to the controversial Élan School in Maine in an effort to correct his unruly behavior.—
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Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report concocted this trade idea that sees the Lakers land and shore up both their frontcourt and backcourt, the Dallas Mavericks duo of former All-Star Klay Thompson and Daniel Gafford.—
Verb
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The wide-leg pants in this matching set are high-waisted with an elastic drawstring waistband for comfort, and are constructed with two side pockets for storage.—
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Gothic architecture, on the other hand, focused on height and light; despite being constructed from heavy stone, Gothic cathedrals seem to defy the laws of gravity.—
Cite this Entry
“Made-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/made-up. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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