shmup

S1H4M3U1P3
/ʃmʌp/

noun

A shoot-'em-up, particularly a two-dimensional shooter themed around spaceship battles.

Scrabble 12
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Meanings

nounshmup (plural shmups)

plural shmups

  1. slangvideo gamesA shoot-'em-up, particularly a two-dimensional shooter themed around spaceship battles.

    Highlights include the great-looking shmup Judgement Silversword.

    2005, Simon Carless, Gaming Hacks
    1 more example

    Galaga was probably the most influential of all of these because it added bonus levels and the power-up, a concept that has become standard in every shmup.

    2005, Raph Koster, A Theory of Fun for Game Design

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
shoot 'em up

Origin

Phonetic contraction of shoot-'em-up.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with shmup

cupsupyuppupduptupgupscupnupThruppact upamp upclose upcrupget someone's dander upgross uplemon drop'supwhat's up
All rhymes →

Anagrams

sumph
Cite this entry
APA

shmup. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shmup

MLA

“shmup.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shmup. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “shmup,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shmup.

Source: shmup on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.