From Middle English macen, machiæ, macian, macke, mak, make, maken, makiȝe, from Old English macian (“to build, make, work”), from Proto-West Germanic *makōn (“to build, make, work”), from *mak (“agreeable, comfortable, fit, suitable”), from Proto-Germanic *makaz (“agreeable, comfortable, fit, suitable”), from Proto-Indo-European *meh₂ǵ-, *meh₂ḱ- (“to knead”) or *meg- (“to be comfortable, pleasant”). Related to match.
Cognates
Cognate with Scots mak (“to make”), Yola maak, maake (“to make”), North Frisian maage, maaki, mååge (“to make”), Saterland Frisian moakje (“to make; to repair; to prepare; to preach; to earn”), West Frisian meitsje (“to make”), Alemannic German mache (“to make; to do”), Bavarian måcha, måchn (“to make; to do; to go; to cause; to play; to matter; to look”), Cimbrian machan (“to make”), Dutch and Low German maken (“to make”), German machen (“to make; to do; to go; to cause; to play; to fare; to look”), Luxembourgish maachen, man (“to make; to do; to take; to equal; to put”), Mòcheno mòchen (“to make”), Vilamovian mahha (“to make; to do”), Yiddish מאַכן (makhn, “to create, make; to do; to say”); also probably Irish mám (“yoke; duty, obligation; function, service”), Latin mācerō (“to soften; to weaken; to mortify; to torture”), Ancient Greek μάσσω (mássō, “to handle, knead; to wipe”), Bulgarian ма́жа (máža, “to smear; to oil”), Czech mazat (“to lubricate; to spread; to smear; to scribble; to erase”), Polish mazać (“to smear; to scribble; to pule, whimper”), Russian ма́зать (mázatʹ, “to oil; to paint; to smear; to soil; to miss”), Serbo-Croatian ма̏зати, mȁzati (“to smear; to dirty”), Ukrainian ма́зати (mázaty, “to smear”), Old Armenian մած (mac, “glued together, joined; coagulated, curdled; adhesive, sticking; compact; dense”), Hindi मचाना (macānā, “to cause, raise, wreak”).
Meanings
Brand; marque; manufacturer; maker.
Q: What make and model of car do you drive? A: It's a Buick LaCrosse.
Near-synonyms: kind, type
we service all makes and models
Manner or style of construction (style of how a thing is made).
Near-synonyms: makeup, form, conformation, composition; form factor
I can name the tribe every moccasin belongs to by the make of it. 1907, Mark Twain, A Horse's Tale:
Origin (of a manufactured article); manufacture; production.
The Royal Typewriter Company is distributing a very attractive eight page folder, announcing the Royal Number 10, the first machine of Royal make which uses levers instead of wires to operate the type-bars. 1914, Judicious Advertising, page 158:
The cane was undoubtedly of foreign make, for it had a solid silver ferrule at one end, which was not English hall–marked. 1904–1905, Baroness Orczy [i.e., Emma Orczy], “The Ayrsham Mystery”, in The Case of Miss Elliott, London: T[homas] Fisher Unwin, published 1905, →OCLC; republished as popular edition, London: Greening & Co., 1909, OCLC 11192831, quoted in The Case of Miss Elliott (ebook no. 2000141h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg of Australia, February 2020:
The camera was of German make.
The camera was of recent make.
A person's character or disposition.
I never feel very much excited about any old thing; it's not my make; but I've got a sort of shiver inside of me, and a watery feeling in the heart region. 1914, Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton, Perch of the Devil, page 274:
(dated) The act or process of making something, especially in industrial manufacturing.
[…] papers are respectively of second or inferior quality, the last being perhaps torn or broken in the "make" — as the manufacture is technically termed. 1908, Charles Thomas Jacobi, Printing: A Practical Treatise on the Art of Typography as Applied More Particularly to the Printing of Books, page 331:
(uncountable) Quantity produced, especially of materials.
In 1880 the make of pig iron in all countries was 18,300,000 tons. 1902 September 16, “German Iron and Steel Production”, in The New York Times, page 8:
A software utility for automatically building large applications, or an implementation of this utility.
However, the unzip and make programs weren't found, so the default was left blank. 2003, D. Curtis Jamison, Perl Programming for Biologists, →ISBN, page 115:
(slang) Identification: recognition (of identity), especially from police records or evidence.
“Okay, if I could understand correctly what Oscar was saying through all the doubletalk, we've got a make on the bigwig occupant of the convoy ahead. Chaim Lieberman, Israeli Ambassador to the United States.” “Shit,” said Gardner. 2008, H.A. Covington, The Brigade, →ISBN, page 660:
"I'm sure we'll get a make on the suspect's prints by day break, so if you come down town, I'll see you get everything available. Go ahead and process the car, we won't have any need of it." 2003, Harlan Wygant, The Samurai Conspiracy: A Story of Revenge by the Author of "The Junkyard Dog.", →ISBN, page 36:
"They ever get a make on the blood type?" Horn asked, staring at the stained mattress. 2003, John Lutz, The Night Spider, →ISBN, page 53:
He got out his binoculars, trying for a make on the plate, but the plate light was conveniently not working. The windows must have been tinted, because he could not see inside the van, either. 2007, P. T. Deutermann, Hunting Season: A Novel, St. Martin's Press, →ISBN:
(slang) A promotion.
Sent back the list of makes with only Post and Hamilton on it. (Buckner had recommended 10 staff officers and 1 combat soldier!) 2004, Joseph Stilwell, Seven Stars: The Okinawa Battle Diaries of Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr. and Joseph Stilwell, →ISBN, page 94:
A homemade project, particularly one demonstrated on television.
Blue Peter "make" 1978, Biddy Baxter, Hazel Gill, Margaret Parnell, Rachel Barnes, Kate Pountney, The 'Blue Peter' Make, Cook & Look Book, page i:
Turn to declare the trump for a hand (in bridge), or to shuffle the cards.
It's your make as the cards lie. Take your time. 1925, Robert William Chambers, The Talkers, page 195:
'Not your make,' said the adjutant sternly and started dealing the cards with his white be-ringed hands as though he was in haste to get rid of them. 1962 (edition), Leo Tolstoy, Hadji Murat: A Tale of the Caucasus
A made basket.
The closing of an electrical circuit.
If the interrupter operated every 2 sec., the current would rise to 10 amp. and drop to zero with successive "makes" and "breaks." 1947, Charles Seymour Siskind, Electricity, page 94:
sv märke (brand) · ja メーク (brand) · nl merk (brand) · ga déanamh (brand) · fi merkki (brand) · cs značka (brand) · hu márka (brand) · hy մակնիշ (brand) · fi malli (brand) · ja 銘柄 (brand) · bg марка (brand) · el μάρκα (brand) · it marca (brand) · de Marke (brand) · pt marca (brand) · ru ма́рка (brand) · da mærke (brand) · hu gyártmány (brand) · ga cineál (brand) · cmn 品牌 (brand) · es marca (brand) · da fabrikat (brand) · eo marko (brand) · pl marka (brand) · cmn 牌子 (brand) · de Fabrikat (brand) · fr marque (brand) · ja 製 (brand)
From Middle English macen, machiæ, macian, macke, mak, make, maken, makiȝe, from Old English macian (“to build, make, work”), from Proto-West Germanic *makōn (“to build, make, work”), from *mak (“agreeable, comfortable, fit, suitable”), from Proto-Germanic *makaz (“agreeable, comfortable, fit, suitable”), from Proto-Indo-European *meh₂ǵ-, *meh₂ḱ- (“to knead”) or *meg- (“to be comfortable, pleasant”). Related to match.
Cognates
Cognate with Scots mak (“to make”), Yola maak, maake (“to make”), North Frisian maage, maaki, mååge (“to make”), Saterland Frisian moakje (“to make; to repair; to prepare; to preach; to earn”), West Frisian meitsje (“to make”), Alemannic German mache (“to make; to do”), Bavarian måcha, måchn (“to make; to do; to go; to cause; to play; to matter; to look”), Cimbrian machan (“to make”), Dutch and Low German maken (“to make”), German machen (“to make; to do; to go; to cause; to play; to fare; to look”), Luxembourgish maachen, man (“to make; to do; to take; to equal; to put”), Mòcheno mòchen (“to make”), Vilamovian mahha (“to make; to do”), Yiddish מאַכן (makhn, “to create, make; to do; to say”); also probably Irish mám (“yoke; duty, obligation; function, service”), Latin mācerō (“to soften; to weaken; to mortify; to torture”), Ancient Greek μάσσω (mássō, “to handle, knead; to wipe”), Bulgarian ма́жа (máža, “to smear; to oil”), Czech mazat (“to lubricate; to spread; to smear; to scribble; to erase”), Polish mazać (“to smear; to scribble; to pule, whimper”), Russian ма́зать (mázatʹ, “to oil; to paint; to smear; to soil; to miss”), Serbo-Croatian ма̏зати, mȁzati (“to smear; to dirty”), Ukrainian ма́зати (mázaty, “to smear”), Old Armenian մած (mac, “glued together, joined; coagulated, curdled; adhesive, sticking; compact; dense”), Hindi मचाना (macānā, “to cause, raise, wreak”).
Meanings
(transitive) To create. ▸ To build, construct, produce, or originate.
Thus, when he drew up instructions in lawyer language, he expressed the important words by an initial, a medial, or a final consonant, and made scratches for all the words between; his clerks, however, understood him very well. 1892, Walter Besant, “Prologue: Who is Edmund Gray?”, in The Ivory Gate […], New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC:
Yet in “Through a Latte, Darkly”, a new study of how Starbucks has largely avoided paying tax in Britain, Edward Kleinbard[…]shows that current tax rules make it easy for all sorts of firms to generate what he calls “stateless income”:[…]. In Starbucks’s case, the firm has in effect turned the process of making an expensive cup of coffee into intellectual property. 2013 June 22, “T time”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, archived from the original on 11 Mar 2023, page 68:
I made a speaking trumpet of my hands and commenced to whoop “Ahoy!” and “Hello!” at the top of my lungs. […] The Colonel woke up, and, after asking what in brimstone was the matter, opened his mouth and roared “Hi!” and “Hello!” like the bull of Bashan. 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter VII, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:
I'll make a man out of him yet.
We made a bird feeder for our yard.
He makes deodorants.
(transitive) To create. ▸ To write or compose.
He made a will.
I made a poem for her wedding.
(transitive) To create. ▸ To bring about; to effect or produce by means of some action.
They were just a bunch of ne'er-do-wells who went around making trouble for honest men.
But whether or not the VCR makes a complete comeback, VHS enthusiasts agree that these tapes occupy an irreplaceable place in culture. 2021 February 20, Hannah Selinger, “Who Is Still Buying VHS Tapes?”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 28 Mar 2022:
make war
(qualifier:religious, transitive) To create. ▸ To create (the universe), especially (in Christianity) from nothing.
God made earth and heaven.
Thine are these orbs of light and shade;
Thou madest Life in man and brute;
Thou madest Death; and lo, thy foot
Is on the skull which thou hast made. 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Prologue”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC:
(transitive) To create. ▸ To prepare (food); to cook (food).
I'm making cereal for breakfast. Who wants some?
(colloquial, intransitive) To behave, to act.
He made as if to punch him, but they both laughed and shook hands.
To make like a deer caught in the headlights.
They made nice together, as if their fight never happened.
(intransitive) To tend; to contribute; to have effect; with for or against.
Follow after the things which make for peace. 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Romans 14:19:
And all Israel's language about this power, except that it makes for righteousness, is approximate language 1873, Matthew Arnold, Literature and Dogma:
Considerations infinite
Do make against it. c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i]:
To constitute.
Style alone does not make a writer. 1995, Harriette Simpson Arnow: Critical Essays on Her Work, p.46
This makes the third infraction.
We made an odd party before the arrival of the Ten, particularly when the Celebrity dropped in for lunch or dinner. He could not be induced to remain permanently at Mohair because Miss Trevor was at Asquith, but he appropriated a Hempstead cart from the Mohair stables and made the trip sometimes twice in a day. 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter V, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
They make a cute couple.
So if your prospective school is proudly displaying that "We Are Outstanding" banner on its perimeter fence, well, that is wonderful … but do bear in mind that in all likelihood it has been awarded for results in those two subjects, rather than for its delivery of a broad and balanced curriculum which brings out the best in every child. Which is, of course, what makes a great primary school. 2014 September 23, A teacher, “Choosing a primary school: a teacher's guide for parents”, in The Guardian:
One swallow does not a summer make.
(transitive) To add up to, have a sum of.
Two and four make six.
(construed with of, qualifier:typically interrogative, transitive) To interpret.
I don’t know what to make of it.
What time do you make it?
They couldn't make anything of the inscription.
(stressed, transitive, usually) To bring into success.
who makes or ruins with a smile or frown 1667, John Dryden, Annus Mirabilis: The Year of Wonders, 1666. […], London: […] Henry Herringman, […], →OCLC, (please specify the stanza number):
This company is what made you.
A great expression and amazing eye contact, in particular, can make a photograph, and without them, you can end up with very little. 2006, Michael Grecco, Lighting and the Dramatic Portrait, Amphoto Books, →ISBN, page 124:
She married into wealth and so has it made.
(ditransitive, qualifier:second object is an adjective or participle) To cause to be.
Since the launch early last year of […] two Silicon Valley start-ups offering free education through MOOCs, massive open online courses, the ivory towers of academia have been shaken to their foundations. University brands built in some cases over centuries have been forced to contemplate the possibility that information technology will rapidly make their existing business model obsolete. 2013 July 20, “The attack of the MOOCs”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845:
Caesar made rich men of his supporters back in Rome.
Scotch will make you a man.
The blisters on my foot made it a problem to walk without a cane.
This might make you a bit woozy.
Mom made it clear what she expected from me in college.
The citizens made their objections clear.
Did I make myself heard?
To cause to appear to be; to represent as.
So this was my future home, I thought! Certainly it made a brave picture. I had seen similar ones fired-in on many a Heidelberg stein. Backed by towering hills,[…]a sky of palest Gobelin flecked with fat, fleecy little clouds, it in truth looked a dear little city; the city of one's dreams. 1908, W[illiam] B[lair] M[orton] Ferguson, chapter IV, in Zollenstein, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:
1709–1710, Thomas Baker, Reflections on Learning
He is not that goose and Ass that Valla would make him.
Homer makes Aphrodite the daughter of Zeus, unlike Hesiod who depicted her as born from the sea foam.
(ditransitive, qualifier:second object is a verb) To cause (to do something); to compel (to do something).
You're making her cry.
In former days every tavern of repute kept such a room for its own select circle, a club, or society, of habitués, who met every evening, for a pipe and a cheerful glass.[…]Strangers might enter the room, but they were made to feel that they were there on sufferance: they were received with distance and suspicion. 1892, Walter Besant, chapter III, in The Ivory Gate […], New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC:
I was made to feel like a criminal.
(ditransitive, qualifier:second object is a verb; can be stressed for emphasis or clarity; second object is a verb; can be stressed for emphasis or clarity) To force to do.
Don’t let them make you suffer.
The teacher made the student study harder.
(ditransitive, of a fact) To indicate or suggest to be.
His past mistakes don’t make him a bad person.
(of a bed, transitive) To cover neatly with bedclothes.
(US, qualifier:crime, slang, transitive) To recognise, identify, spot.
I caught sight of him two or three times and then made him turning north into Laurel Canyon Drive. 1939, Raymond Chandler, The Big Sleep, Penguin, published 2011, page 33:
Linus Caldwell: Well, she just made Danny and Yen, which means in the next 48 hours the three o' your pictures are gonna be in every police station in Europe. 2004, George Nolfi et al., Ocean's Twelve, Warner Bros. Pictures, 0:50:30
David Sinclair: (walking) Almost at Seventh; I should have a visual any second now. (rounds a corner, almost collides into Kaleed Asan) Damn, that was close.
Don Eppes: David, he make you?
David Sinclair: No, I don't think so. 2007 May 4, Andrew Dettmann et al., "Under Pressure", episode 3-22 of Numb3rs, 00:01:16
(colloquial, transitive) To arrive at a destination, usually at or by a certain time.
I won't be able to make dinner; something's come up at work.
We should make Cincinnati by 7 tonight.
They that sail in the middle can make no land of either side. 1650, Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica: […], 2nd edition, London: […] A[braham] Miller, for Edw[ard] Dod and Nath[aniel] Ekins, […], →OCLC:
(colloquial, intransitive) To proceed (in a direction).
As the guard's whistle shrilled the "right away," I made to join my companions in the train, but with a smile the driver, whose name was Abdul, bade me take the fireman's seat. 1942 July-August, Philip Spencer, “On the Footplate in Egypt”, in Railway Magazine, page 208:
Make for the hills! It's a wildfire!
They made away from the fire toward the river.
They made westward over the snowy mountains.
(transitive) To cover (a given distance) by travelling.
I had occasion […] to make a somewhat long business trip to Chicago, and on my return […] I found Farrar awaiting me in the railway station. He smiled his wonted fraction by way of greeting, […], and finally leading me to his buggy, turned and drove out of town. I was completely mystified at such an unusual proceeding. 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter II, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
I made over twenty miles that day, for I was now hardened to fatigue and accustomed to long hikes, having spent considerable time hunting and exploring in the immediate vicinity of camp. 1918 September–November, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “The Land That Time Forgot”, in The Blue Book Magazine, Chicago, Ill.: Story-press Corp., →OCLC; republished as chapter VIII, in Hugo Gernsback, editor, Amazing Stories, (please specify |part=I to III), New York, N.Y.: Experimenter Publishing, 1927, →OCLC:
(transitive) To move at (a speed).
The ship could make 20 knots an hour in calm seas.
This baby can make 220 miles an hour.
To appoint; to name.
On November 15, 1396,[…]Benedict XIII made him bishop of Noyon; 1991, Bernard Guenée, Between Church and State: The Lives of Four French Prelates, →ISBN:
(slang, transitive) To induct into the Mafia or a similar organization (as a made man).
Jimmy Conway: They're gonna make him.
Henry Hill: Paulie's gonna make you? 1990, Nicholas Pileggi, Martin Scorsese, Goodfellas:
(colloquial, euphemistic, intransitive) To defecate or urinate.
"He made in his pants, okay? I hope everybody's satisfied!" She flung her hat on the floor and kicked it. "He'll never come back to school now! Never! And it's all your fault! 2003, Mary Anne Kelly, The Cordelia Squad, page 121:
When my father comes back with a dark wet spot on his pants, right in front, as if he has made in his pants, he starts eating his food in great shovelfuls. 1992, Merrill Joan Gerber, The kingdom of Brooklyn, page 30:
(transitive) To earn, to gain (money, points, membership or status).
They hope to make a bigger profit.
He didn't make the choir after his voice changed.
Wales' defence had an unfamiliar look with Cardiff youngster Darcy Blake preferred to 44-cap Danny Gabbidon of Queen's Park Rangers, who did not even make the bench. 2011 September 2, “Wales 2-1 Montenegro”, in BBC:
She made ten points in that game.
Bart spies an opportunity to make a quick buck so he channels his inner carny and posits his sinking house as a natural wonder of the world and its inhabitants as freaks, barking to dazzled spectators, “Behold the horrors of the Slanty Shanty! See the twisted creatures that dwell within! Meet Cue-Ball, the man with no hair!” 2012 May 20, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: The Simpsons (classic): “Marge Gets A Job” (season 4, episode 7; originally aired 11/05/1992)”, in The Onion AV Club:
I lived in tiny apartments with rotating roommates, paying rent wildly disproportionate to what I made. 2026 April 22, Jillian Sanders, “The Danger of Surrendering Your Financial Independence in a Relationship”, in TIME, archived from the original on 22 Apr 2026:
(transitive) To achieve coverage in; to appear in.
The special classes seemed to help because, Mrs. Zinmer recalled with some pride, in the seventh grade he made the honor roll. 1977 July 9, William Robbins, “Mother Recalls Anger and Conflict of Boy Held in Fire Fatal to 42”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 20 Feb 2018:
The Brexit results made the front page for both second editions, below the fold. 2016 June 24, Stephen Hiltner, “How the ‘Brexit’ News Made the Front Page”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 24 Jun 2016:
Ordinary New York kinds of things happened to him. He was mugged in Central Park. Somebody stole his sport utility vehicle. Strangers talked to him on the subway. A friend of a friend got him Yankees tickets. But when it happened to Kennedy, it made the papers. He was public property for years: the tabloids long ago baptised him a Page One "Hunk." 1999 July 23, Susan Sachs, “New Yorkers Fondly Recall a 'Regular Guy' Who Fascinated Them”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 30 Jul 2026:
He said the database was created using very conservative standards. Inclusion on a credit agency watch list was not enough to make the list, he said. For example, Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, a complex of 110 rent-regulated buildings in Manhattan that Tishman Speyer Properties and BlackRock Realty bought in 2006 for $5.4 billion, is not listed as potentially troubled, […] 2008 December 17, Terry Pristin, “A List a Landlord Doesn’t Want to Be On”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 30 Jul 2026:
(transitive) To pay, to cover (an expense); chiefly used after expressions of inability.
Whether, […], the construction of additional roads […] would present a case in which the exaction of prohibitory or otherwise onerous rates may be prevented, though it result in an impossibility for some or all of the roads to make expenses, we need not say; no such case is before us. 1889 May 1, Chief Justice George P. Raney, Pensacola & A. R. Co. v. State of Florida (judicial opinion), reproduced in The Southern Reporter, Volume 5, West Publishing Company, p.843
At first glance, you may be able to make rent and other overhead expenses because the business is doing well, but if sales drop can you still make rent? 2005, Yuvi Shmul, Ron Peltier, Make It Big with Yuvi: How to Buy Or Start a Small Business, the Best Investment, AuthorHouse, →ISBN, page 67:
So you can’t make payroll. This happens.[…]many business owners who have never confronted it before will be forced to deal with this most difficult matter of not making payroll. 2011, Donald Todrin, Successfully Navigating the Downturn, Entrepreneur Press, →ISBN, page 194:
(intransitive, obsolete) To compose verses; to write poetry; to versify.
ca.1360-1387, William Langland, Piers Plowman
to solace him some time, as I do when I make
To enact; to establish.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. 1791, The First Amendment to the United States Constitution
To develop into; to prove to be.
Classical literature usually makes heavy reading.
She'll make a fine president.
(Appalachia) To study or train so as to become (a profession); to grow up to be (something).
He'll make a doctor one day.
To form or formulate in the mind.
make plans
made a questionable decision
To perform a feat.
make a u-turn
Say, you know? I knew I should have made a left toin at Albuquerque. 1945 January 13, Herr Meets Hare, spoken by Bugs Bunny:
make a pass
make a leap
(intransitive) To gain sufficient audience to warrant its existence.
In the end, my class didn't make, which left me with a bit of free time.
(obsolete) To act in a certain manner; to have to do; to manage; to interfere; to be active; often in the phrase to meddle or make.
a scurvy, jack-a-nape priest to meddle or make c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merry Wiues of Windsor”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iv]:
(obsolete) To increase; to augment; to accrue.
(obsolete) To be engaged or concerned in.
Gomez, what makest thou here, with a whole brotherhood of city bailiffs? 1681, John Dryden, The Spanish Fryar: Or, the Double Discovery. […], London: […] Richard Tonson and Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC, (please specify the page number):
(archaic) To cause to be (in a specified place), used after a subjective what.
What makes her in the wood so late,
A furlong from the castle gate? 1816, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Christabel:
Footman. Madam! Mr. Dorimant!
Lov. What makes him here? 1676, George Etherege, The Man of Mode:
(euphemistic, transitive) To take the virginity of.
I was a young un at 'Oogli,
Shy as a girl to begin;
Aggie de Castrer she made me,
— An' Aggie was clever as sin;
Older than me, but my first un —
More like a mother she were
Showed me the way to promotion an' pay,
An' I learned about women from 'er! 1896, Rudyard Kipling, The Ladies:
(transitive) To have sexual intercourse with.
The boys in the lower classes who had already dropped out of school derived much of their prestige among their peers from their skill in “making” girls. 1959, Vance Packard, The Status Seekers, Pocket Books, published 1971, →ISBN, page 138:
Monday night, I'm makin' Jen
Tuesday night, I'm makin' Lyn
Wednesday night, I'm makin' Catherine
Oh, why can't I be makin' love come true? 1996, Rivers Cuomo, “Tired of Sex”, in Pinkerton, performed by Weezer:
The only thing she wants to make is you! 1979, Mark Tuttle, “The Loan Shark”, in Three's Company, season 4, episode 10 (television production):
He could see that her face was thin, proud. She looked like she'd be a hard dame to make. He didn't want just that. She'd be a hard dame to win. 1934, James T. Farrell, chapter 16, in The Young Manhood of Studs Lonigan:
And I'm trying to make some girl / Who tells me, "Baby, better come back, maybe next week" / "'Cause you see, I'm on a losing streak" 1965 June 4, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, “(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction”, performed by the Rolling Stones:
(intransitive) Of water, to flow toward land; to rise.
The flood had made, the wind was nearly calm, and being bound down the river, the only thing for us was to come to and wait for the turn of the tide. 1899 February, Joseph Conrad, “The Heart of Darkness”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume CLXV, number M, New York, N.Y.: The Leonard Scott Publishing Company, […], →OCLC, part I, page 193:
(transitive) To establish two or more men on (a point) so that it cannot be captured.
da skabe (to create) · ga tabhair ar (to force to do) · af doen (to cause to do) · sq kry (to produce) · da få til (to force to do) · he היווה (to constitute) · sk robiť (to construct) · ko 제작하다 (to construct) · as সজা (to construct) · ja 創造する (to create) · hu készít (to form) · ko 해석하다 (to interpret) · fy dwaan litte (to force to do) · pl pościelić (to cover with bedclothes) · zza vırazen (to create) · hu létrehoz (to produce) · ko 제작하다 (to create) · fy meitsje (to form) · gl facer (to produce) · tr yaratmak (to create) · ang wyrċan (to create) · ko 시키다 (to force to do) · de lassen (to cause to do) · fa ساختن (to produce) · evn о- (to construct) · is gera (to construct) · ja させる (to force to do) · sq kry (to construct) · la ago (to produce) · goh mahhōn (to form) · fi pedata (to cover with bedclothes) · hy ստիպել (to force to do) · goh mahhōn (to create) · ur بنانا (to construct) · kix hīeshá (to create) · goh mahhōn (to constitute) · ja 解釈する (to interpret) · ca fer (to construct) · de bringen (to cause to do) · es hacer (to create) · he גרם (to cause to be) · ja 作る (to construct) · egy ir (to construct) · la facio (to create) · ko 만들다 (to create) · scn fari (to construct) · ga déan (to construct) · grc ποιέω (to construct) · hy լինել (to constitute) · yue 整 (to create) · af maak (to create) · fi tuottaa (to produce) · ru сде́лать (to create) · es hacer (to earn, to gain (money)) · xfa facio (facio) (to create) · gl facer (to cover with bedclothes) · sco mak (to produce) · uk виготовля́ти (to construct) · pt fazer (to cause to do) · ast facer (to produce) · kix hīe (to constitute) · hy արտադրել (to produce) · pl zmuszać (to force to do) · be рабі́ць (to construct) · vec far (to construct) · hu készít (to produce) · hu -tat (to cause to do) · eo devigi (to force to do) · de lassen (to force to do) · sco mak (to create) · pl wykonywać (to produce) · fi ajatella (to interpret) · cs tvořit (to create) · ga déan (to create) · es construir (to construct) · az düzəltmək (to produce) · as বনোৱা (to construct) · cy gwneud (to produce) · nl ertoe brengen (to cause to do) · da udføre (to construct) · kix hīe (to construct) · kw gwul (to construct) · ang dōn (to cause to do) · da lave (to construct) · cop ⲣⲁ (to construct) · cy awgrymu (to indicate or suggest to be) · hi सृजना (to create) · es obrar (to construct) · el καταφέρνω (to bring into success) · hu keres (to earn, to gain (money)) · hu alkot (to create) · zza ben (diq) (to cause to be) · es elaborar (to produce) · ta பண்ணு (to produce) · ko 만들다 (to construct) · fr rendre (to cause to be) · syl ꠛꠣꠘꠣꠘꠤ (to construct) · hi रचना (to create) · de machen (to construct) · nl interpreteren (to interpret) · la compello (to force to do) · fi olla (to constitute) · ta பண்ணு (to construct) · kea faze (to construct) · uk зроби́ти (to construct) · ltg gatavēt (to construct) · mhn mòchen (to create) · fy meitsje (to cause to be) · ko 하다 (to construct) · az eləmək (to construct) · ar جَعَلَ (to cause to do) · no lage (to create) · ro face (to construct) · ar جَعَلَ (to cause to be) · ba эштәү (to construct) · goh mahhōn (to produce) · liv tīedõ (to construct) · ar صَنَعَ (to create) · cmn 製作 /制作 (to construct) · ko 일으키다 (to cause to do) · eo krei (to create) · la facio (to constitute) · hy հարկադրել (to force to do) · sq krijoj (to form) · la creo (to create) · hu megvet (to cover with bedclothes) · it rendere (to cause to be) · gl facer (to construct) · uk роби́ти (to construct) · gun japo (to create) · ba яһау (to construct) · la facio (to indicate or suggest to be) · yua beet (to construct) · ru изгота́вливать (to construct) · ang dōn (to force to do) · syl ꠢꠣꠎꠣ (to construct) · sco mak (to construct) · yao kupanganya (to create) · hy կազմել (to constitute) · mbb ba'al (to construct) · eo igi (to cause to do) · ru де́лать (to construct) · yue 整 (to produce) · sv göra (to cause to be) · br ober (to construct) · hu felismer (to recognise) · ceb gama (to create) · zza icad kerden (to produce) · lv likt (to force to do) · ca fer (to cause to do) · tr yapmak (to create) · sco mak (to form) · kix hīeshá (to form) · frr maage (to construct) · fy tinke (to interpret) · kea faze (to produce) · af maak (to construct) · hu rávesz (to force to do) · mrw ba'al (to construct) · as বনোৱা (to create) · kix hīeshá (to constitute) · hu alkot (to produce) · cs dělat (to create) · bew bikin (to cause to be) · cy cynhyrchu (to produce) · hy պատրաստել (to construct) · pdt moaken (to construct) · bew bikin (to cause to do) · fi teettää (to force to do) · kw gul (to construct) · hu sikerre visz (to bring into success) · nl doen (to force to do) · cy gorfodi (to force to do) · yao kupanganya (to construct) · fa ایجاد کردن (to produce) · alt эдер (to construct) · alt кылар (to construct) · csm čý·l- (to construct) · arq دار (to construct) · fa تشکیل دادن (to form) · ar جَعَلَ (to indicate or suggest to be) · fy grutmeitsje (to bring into success) · hi रचना करना (to create) · ang wyrċan (to construct) · pl tworzyć (to create) · txb yām- (to construct) · pl stworzyć (to create) · pt fazer (to indicate or suggest to be) · nl doen (to cause to do) · sl narediti (to construct) · njo-jgl yanglu (to construct) · fa ساختن (to create) · pl zmusić (to force to do) · ast facer (to construct) · af maak (to cause to be) · sq kry (to create) · hu tesz (to cause to be) · zza resnen (to produce) · grc κτίζω (to create) · af maak (to interpret) · mhr ышташ (to produce) · ar صَنَعَ (to construct) · la struo (to constitute) · ba эшләү (to create) · sv skapa (to create) · hy դրդել (to force to do) · bew bikin (to create) · ba эштәү (to produce) · fr faire (to cause to do) · nl maken (to interpret) · am መስራት (to construct) · la ago (to indicate or suggest to be) · ba яһау (to produce) · he יצר (to produce) · hy հասկանալ (to interpret) · cs stlát (to cover with bedclothes) · eo fari (to construct) · pl ścielić (to cover with bedclothes) · ga cóirigh (to cover with bedclothes) · cy gwneud (to construct) · ru сде́лать (to construct) · fi tunnistaa (to recognise) · ru де́лать (to create) · xfa facio (facio) (to produce) · ang earnian (to earn, to gain (money)) · ta செய் (to construct) · sl narediti (to bring into success) · pt fazer (to construct) · ja 創る (to create) · de machen (to cause to be) · sq bëj (to produce) · gl gañar (to earn, to gain (money)) · gl facer (to create) · ja 作る (to produce) · fi ansaita (to earn, to gain (money)) · la ago (to cause to do) · pl wyrobić (to produce) · fi tehdä (to bring into success) · de machen (to indicate or suggest to be) · xfa facio (facio) (to construct) · cmn 使 (to cause to be) · af maak (to indicate or suggest to be) · ja 推測させる (to indicate or suggest to be) · fi tienata (to earn, to gain (money)) · la ago (to create) · gun japo (to construct) · fi luoda (to create) · hi सृजन करना (to create) · gl arroupar (to cover with bedclothes) · war himo (to produce) · hi विवश करना (to force to do) · hy դարձնել (to indicate or suggest to be) · uk вигото́вити (to construct) · ar فَعَلَ (to construct) · la facio (to bring into success) · es hacer de (to cause to be) · ko 성공하다 (to bring into success) · es devengar (to earn, to gain (money)) · es hacer (to indicate or suggest to be) · goh mahhōn (to interpret) · de machen (to produce) · lv piespiest (to force to do) · kix hīeshá (to construct) · ru изгото́вить (to construct) · bg опра́вя (to cover with bedclothes) · hu tesz (to indicate or suggest to be) · la distingo (to recognise) · ja 強制する (to force to do) · af doen (to force to do) · fa ساختن (to construct) · cs udělat (to create) · kea faze (to create) · et tegema (to construct) · la produco (to produce) · it fare (to construct) · ko 벌다 (to earn, to gain (money)) · hu sikeressé tesz (to bring into success) · hu készít (to construct) · ltg taiseit (to construct) · fi tehdä (to produce) · bew bikin (to produce) · ko 이루다 (to form) · is búa til (to create) · ja 成し遂げる (to bring into success) · de machen (to bring into success) · kmr çêkirin (to construct) · goh mahhōn (to construct) · as প্ৰস্তুত কৰা (to produce) · pt fazer (to create) · af vorm (to constitute) · da gøre (to cause to be) · fi tehdä (to construct) · mhn mòchen (to construct) · la facio (to construct) · hy սարքել (to construct) · mk прави (to construct) · pl konstruować (to construct) · es confeccionar (to produce) · ru прину́дить (to force to do) · fr faire (to construct) · es edificar (to construct) · es hacer que (to cause to be) · ba эштәү (to create) · ja させる (to cause to do) · eve о- (to construct) · mhr ышташ (to create) · fy meitsje (to create) · pt fazer (to force to do) · zza arden (to cause to do) · fi muotoilla (to form) · nl maken (to cause to be) · ja やらせる (to cause to do) · pl produkować (to produce) · yue 搵錢 /揾钱 (to earn, to gain (money)) · alt јазаар (to construct) · la facio (to produce) · el κατασκευάζω (to construct) · be зрабі́ць (to construct) · la ago (to construct) · xdq бира́ра (to construct) · el φτιάχνω (to create) · ar جَعَلَ (to force to do) · he בנה (to construct) · la ago (to bring into success) · hu megágyaz (to cover with bedclothes) · hy -ացն- (to cause to do) · ltg rūst (to construct) · hu (hu) kiszúr (to recognise) · ta செய் (to produce) · ja 生産する (to produce) · ang dōn (to cause to be) · cs přimět (to force to do) · de bauen (to construct) · hy -եցն- (to cause to do) · fr faire (to create) · la struo (to construct) · frr mååge (to construct) · it fare (to cause to do) · ja 建設する (to construct) · ain カラ (to construct) · ru заста́вить (to force to do) · de machen (to cover with bedclothes) · ga tabhair ar (to cause to do) · cs přinutit (to force to do) · ba эшләү (to construct) · el καταλαβαίνω (to interpret) · hu -et (to cause to do) · sv göra (to construct) · goh mahhōn (to bring into success) · ja 引き起こす (to cause to do) · hy անել (to construct) · cs donutit (to force to do) · ist fà (to construct) · bg строя (to construct) · gld анго- (to construct) · bg създавам (to create) · fi tehdä (to create) · fi tulkita (to interpret) · es hacer (to construct) · sv forma (to form) · es hacer (to bring into success) · mt għamel (to construct) · chk föri (to construct) · nds-de maken (to construct) · cy creu (to create) · ko 달성하다 (to bring into success) · fy fertsjinje (to earn, to gain (money)) · pt fazer (to produce) · pl czynić (to cause to be) · mhn mòchen (to produce) · kix hīe (to create) · hu elér (to cause to do) · itk פַֿארֵי (to produce) · hu észrevesz (to recognise) · bg опра́вям (to cover with bedclothes) · hy մեկնաբանել (to interpret) · hi बनाना (to construct) · enm maken (to create) · got 𐍄𐌰𐌿𐌾𐌰𐌽 (to construct) · sv tillverka (to produce) · ja する (to cause to be) · de machen (to interpret) · ba эшләү (to produce) · fi rakentaa (to construct) · ru изготовля́ть (to construct) · az qayırmaq (to produce) · cs činit (to cause to be) · la facio (to cause to be) · xbr pandoi (to construct) · es obligar (to force to do) · pl sprawiać (to cause to do) · he הכריח (to force to do) · el κατασκευάζω (to create) · grc ποιέω (to create) · hy -ցն- (to cause to do) · lv darīt (to construct) · as সজা (to create) · hy շինել (to construct) · he עשה (to create) · kw gwruthyl (to construct) · es formar (to form) · jra ngă (to construct) · gd càirich (to cover with bedclothes) · cop ⲉⲓⲣⲉ (to construct) · kix hìeshā (to constitute) · no tjene (to earn, to gain (money)) · itk פַֿארֵי (to cause to do) · ast facer (to create) · so samayn (to construct) · cs vytvářet (to create) · pt fazer (to bring into success) · pl wytworzyć (to produce) · ko 구성하다 (to constitute) · el κάνω (to create) · fi tehdä (to indicate or suggest to be) · es hacer (to constitute) · he גרם (to cause to do) · de produzieren (to produce) · ar صَنَعَ (to produce) · ru принужда́ть (to force to do) · da lave (to create) · yue 整 (to construct) · hu értelmez (to interpret) · es hacer (to interpret) · kix hìeshā (to construct) · cmn 賺 /赚 (to earn, to gain (money)) · pl wykonać (to produce) · nrf faithe (to construct) · fy meitsje (to produce) · fi pakottaa (to force to do) · es hacer (to cause to do) · hu alkot (to constitute) · fi tehdä (to cause to be) · la ago (to cause to be) · gl construír (to construct) · nl vormen (to constitute) · ru заставля́ть (to force to do) · ja 原因になる (to cause to be) · az etmək (to construct) · de zwingen (to force to do) · fr créer (to create) · hu késztet (to force to do) · es formar (to construct) · es instrumentar (to create) · de interpretieren (to interpret) · fy meitsje (to interpret) · nl denken (to interpret) · ru создава́ть (to create) · la cogo (to force to do) · pl wyrabiać (to produce) · kix hīe (to form) · sv tjäna (to earn, to gain (money)) · zza kerden (to construct) · pt interpretar (to interpret) · ja 構成する (to constitute) · es artificiar (to construct) · ang wyrċan (to constitute) · cs vyrábět (to create) · nl maken (to construct) · pt fazer (to cause to be) · pl robić (to create) · fy meitsje (to indicate or suggest to be) · es cobrar (to earn, to gain (money)) · el φτιάχνω (to construct) · cs ustlat (to cover with bedclothes) · es producir (to produce) · nl maken (to create) · ba яһау (to create) · pt construir (to construct) · af produseer (to produce) · pt deixar (to cause to be) · bg правя (to produce) · fr gagner (to earn, to gain (money)) · hy ստեղծել (to create) · nl maken (to indicate or suggest to be) · nl ertoe brengen (to force to do) · pl wytwarzać (to produce) · nl maken (to bring into success) · fy foarmje (to constitute) · de machen (to create) · ko 생산하다 (to produce) · es crear (to create) · fy meitsje (to construct) · ru созда́ть (to create) · es hacer (to cause to be) · hu -tet (to cause to do) · la facio (to cause to do) · hi कारण (to cause to be) · cmn 使得 (to cause to be) · zza kerden (to constitute) · fy meitsje (to constitute) · hy դարձնել (to cause to be) · cs stavět (to construct) · da fremstille (to create) · es ganar (to earn, to gain (money)) · bew bikin (to construct) · vi làm (to construct) · ja 製造する (to produce) · as সৃষ্টি কৰা (to create) · sa आरभ्ति (to produce)
From Middle English make, imake, ȝemace, from Old English ġemaca (“a mate, an equal, companion, peer”), from Proto-West Germanic *gamakō, from Proto-Germanic *gamakô (“companion, comrade”), from Proto-Indo-European *maǵ- (“to knead, oil”). Reinforced by Old Norse maki (“an equal”).
Cognate with Icelandic maki (“spouse”), Swedish make (“spouse, husband”), Danish mage (“companion, fellow, mate”). Doublet of match.
Meanings
(qualifier:usually in phrase “easy make”, slang) Past, present, or future target of seduction (usually female).
To me, if I weren't going with someone and was taking pills, it would be like advertising that I'm an easy make. 2007, Prudence Mors Rains, Becoming an Unwed Mother, →ISBN, page 26:
She's your make, not mine. […] It isn't anything short of difficult to entertain someone else's pregnant fiancee. 1962, Ralph Moreno, A Man's Estate, page 12:
(UK, dialectal) Mate; a spouse or companion; a match.
Th'Elfe therewith astownd,
Vpstarted lightly from his looser make,
And his vnready weapons gan in hand to take. 1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book I, Canto VII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:
But then sometimes I thought, it's a black Crake
That never to her-sell can get a Make. 1684, Meriton, Praise Ale:
Where their maids and their makes
At dancing and wakes,
Had their napkins and posies
And the wipers for their noses 1624, Ben Jonson, The Masque of Owls at Kenilworth:
Every cake hath its make; but a scrape cake hath two. 1678 (later reprinted: 1855), John Ray, A Hand-book of Proverbs
(Ireland, Northern-England, Scotland, archaic) A halfpenny.
the last we shall have, I take it; for a make to a million, but we trine to the nubbing cheat to-morrow. 1826, Sir Walter Scott, Woodstock; Or, the Cavalier:
Only as he climbed the steps did he mind that he hadn't even a meck upon him, and turned to jump off as the tram with a showd swung grinding down to the Harbour […] 1934, Lewis Grassic Gibbon, Grey Granite, Polygon 2006 (A Scots Quair), page 606
(East-Anglia, Essex, obsolete) An agricultural tool resembling a scythe, used to cut (harvest) certain plants such as peas, reeds, or tares.
Harvest. Taken up by a pease-make, and left in small heaps, and turned as often as the weather may make it necessary. 1811, William Gooch, General view of the agriculture of the county of Cambridge; drawn up for the consideration of the Board of Agriculture and Internal Improvement, page 142, section VI "Pease"
Harvest.—When left for seed, they are cut and wadded as pease, with a make.
Produce.—From three to six sacks an acre. 1797, Arthur Young, General View of the Agriculture of the County of Suffolk: Drawn Up for the Consideration of the Board of Agriculture and Internal Improvement, page 73: