trumped-up

[ truhmpt-uhp ]
See synonyms for trumped-up on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. spuriously devised; fraudulent; fabricated: He was arrested on some trumped-up charge.

Origin of trumped-up

1
1720–30; special use of trump1; see -ed2

Words Nearby trumped-up

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use trumped-up in a sentence

  • But he failed to impose upon the Colonel, and was even far from impressing him with this trumped-up knowledge of bygone days.

  • "It is a cowardly pretext on the part of the citizens, trumped up to save their property for the Yankees," said he.

    The Boys of '61 | Charles Carleton Coffin.
  • Robber raids they called these wars which he waged for trumped-up pretexts.

    A German Pompadour | Marie Hay
  • With the connivance of a corrupt police force, Tim can even ruin him on a trumped-up charge.

    The Old World in the New | Edward Alsworth Ross
  • Then she began to ask herself if he had spoken the truth, or had trumped up this story to frighten her?

    File No. 113 | Emile Gaboriau