3/30/23, 4:29 AM make - Wiktionary

make
See also: Make, makë, måke, mǎkè, mąkę and makɛ

Contents
English
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
Alternative forms
Verb
Usage notes
Conjugation
Derived terms
Translations
See also
Noun
Synonyms
Translations
Etymology 2
Noun
Etymology 3
Alternative forms
Noun
Etymology 4
Noun
References
Anagrams
Dutch
Pronunciation
Verb
Hawaiian
Etymology
Noun
Verb
Japanese
Romanization

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Middle English
Etymology 1
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
Noun
Derived terms
Descendants
References
Etymology 2
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
Noun
Descendants
References
Etymology 3
Verb
Moore
Etymology
Pronunciation
Verb
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology
Noun
Derived terms
References
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology
Noun
Derived terms
References
Swazi
Noun
Inflection
Swedish
Etymology
Pronunciation
Noun
Declension
Synonyms
Antonyms

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Tabaru
Pronunciation
Verb
References

English

Pronunciation

IPA(key): /meɪk/, [meɪkʲ]

Audio (UK) 0:02

Audio (US) 0:01

Rhymes: -eɪk

Etymology 1

From Middle English maken, from Old English macian ‎(“to make, build, work”‎), from Proto-West
Germanic *makōn ‎(“to make, build, work”‎), from Proto-Indo-European *meh₂ǵ- ‎(“to knead, mix,
make”‎). Cognate with Latin mācerō, macer, Ancient Greek μάσσω ‎(mássō‎), Scots mak ‎(“to make”‎),
Saterland Frisian moakje ‎(“to make”‎), West Frisian meitsje ‎(“to make”‎), Dutch maken ‎(“to make”‎),
Dutch Low Saxon maken ‎(“to make”‎) and German Low German maken ‎(“to make”‎) and German
machen ‎(“to make, do”‎). Related to match.

Alternative forms

mak (Wearside, Durham, dialectal)

makee (pronunciation spelling)
myek (Tyneside, dialectal)

Verb

make (third-person singular simple present makes, present participle making, simple past and
past participle made or (dialectal or obsolete) maked)

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1. (transitive) To create.
1. To build, construct, produce, or originate. [quotations ▼] [synonyms ▲]

Synonyms: fabricate; see also Thesaurus:build

We made a bird feeder for our yard.
I'll make a man out of him yet.
He makes deodorants.

2. To write or compose.

I made a poem for her wedding.

He made a will.

3. To bring about; to effect or produce by means of some action.

make war
They were just a bunch of ne'er-do-wells who went around making trouble for honest
men.

4. (religious) To create (the universe), especially (in Christianity) from nothing.

God made earth and heaven.

5. (transitive) To prepare (food); to cook (food).

I'm making cereal for breakfast. Who wants some?

2. (intransitive, now mostly colloquial) To behave, to act.

To make like a deer caught in the headlights.

They made nice together, as if their fight never happened.
He made as if to punch him, but they both laughed and shook hands.

3. (intransitive) To tend; to contribute; to have effect; with for or against. [quotations ▼]

4. To constitute. [quotations ▼]

They make a cute couple.

This makes the third infraction.
One swallow does not a summer make.

5. (transitive) To add up to, have a sum of.

Two and four make six.

6. (transitive, construed with of, typically interrogative) To interpret.

I don’t know what to make of it.

They couldn't make anything of the inscription.
What time do you make it?

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7. (transitive, usually stressed) To bring into success. [quotations ▼]

This company is what made you.

She married into wealth and so has it made.

8. (ditransitive, second object is an adjective or participle) To cause to be. [quotations ▼] [synonym ▲]

Synonym: render
The citizens made their objections clear.
This might make you a bit woozy.
Did I make myself heard?
Scotch will make you a man.

9. To cause to appear to be; to represent as. [quotations ▼]

Homer makes Aphrodite the daughter of Zeus, unlike Hesiod who depicted her as born from
the sea foam.

10. (ditransitive, second object is a verb) To cause (to do something); to compel (to do something).
[quotations ▼]

You're making her cry.

I was made to feel like a criminal.

11. (ditransitive, second object is a verb, can be stressed for emphasis or clarity) To force to do.

The teacher made the student study.

Don’t let them make you suffer.

12. (ditransitive, of a fact) To indicate or suggest to be.

His past mistakes don’t make him a bad person.

13. (transitive, of a bed) To cover neatly with bedclothes.

14. (transitive, US slang, crime, law enforcement) To recognise, identify, spot. [quotations ▼]
[synonyms ▲]

Synonyms: twig, notice; see also Thesaurus:identify

15. (transitive, colloquial) To arrive at a destination, usually at or by a certain time. [quotations ▼]

We should make Cincinnati by 7 tonight.

16. (intransitive, colloquial) To proceed (in a direction). [quotations ▼]

They made westward over the snowy mountains.

Make for the hills! It's a wildfire!
They made away from the fire toward the river.

17. (transitive) To cover (a given distance) by travelling. [from 16thc.] [quotations ▼]

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18. (transitive) To move at (a speed). [from 17thc.]

The ship could make 20 knots an hour in calm seas.

This baby can make 220 miles an hour.

19. To appoint; to name. [quotations ▼]

20. (transitive, slang) To induct into the Mafia or a similar organization (as a made man). [quotations ▼]
21. (intransitive, colloquial, euphemistic) To defecate or urinate. [quotations ▼]
22. (transitive) To earn, to gain (money, points, membership or status). [quotations ▼]

They hope to make a bigger profit.

He didn't make the choir after his voice changed.
She made ten points in that game.

23. (transitive) To pay, to cover (an expense); chiefly used after expressions of inability. [quotations ▼]
24. (obsolete, intransitive) To compose verses; to write poetry; to versify. [quotations ▼]
25. To enact; to establish. [quotations ▼]
26. To develop into; to prove to be.

She'll make a fine president.

27. To form or formulate in the mind.

make plans
made a questionable decision

28. To perform a feat.

make a leap
make a pass
make a u-turn

29. (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.

30. (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. [quotations ▼]
31. (obsolete) To increase; to augment; to accrue.
32. (obsolete) To be engaged or concerned in. [quotations ▼]
33. (now archaic) To cause to be (in a specified place), used after a subjective what. [quotations ▼]
34. (transitive, euphemistic) To take the virginity of. [quotations ▼]
35. (transitive) To have sexual intercourse with. [quotations ▼] [synonym ▲]

Synonyms: see Thesaurus:copulate with

36. (intransitive) Of water, to flow toward land; to rise. [quotations ▼]

Usage notes

In older forms of English, when the pronoun thou was in active use, and verbs used -est for
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distinct second-person singular indicative forms, the verb make had the form makest, and had
madest for its past tense.
Similarly, when the ending -eth was in active use for third-person singular present indicative
forms, the form maketh was used.

Conjugation
Conjugation of make [show ▼]

Derived terms
foremake make down make someone's blood boil
formake make for make someone's blood run
Mackem make friends cold
make something of
[ show more ▼ ] 

Translations
±to construct [show ▼]

±to produce [show ▼]

±to create [show ▼]

±to form [show ▼]

±to constitute [show ▼]

±to interpret [show ▼]

±to bring into success [show ▼]

±to cause to be [show ▼]

±to cause to do [show ▼]

±to force to do [show ▼]

±to indicate or suggest to be [show ▼]

±to cover with bedclothes [show ▼]

±to recognise [show ▼]

±to earn, to gain (money) [show ▼]

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation
tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

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Translations to be checked [show ▼]

See also
Appendix:Collocations of do, have, make, and take

Noun

make (plural makes)

1. Brand or kind; model.

What make of car do you drive?

2. Manner or style of construction (style of how a thing is made); form. [quotations ▼]

3. Origin (of a manufactured article); manufacture; production. [quotations ▼]

The camera was of German make.

4. A person's character or disposition. [quotations ▼]

5. (dated) The act or process of making something, especially in industrial manufacturing.
[quotations ▼]
6. (uncountable) Quantity produced, especially of materials. [quotations ▼]
7. (computing) A software utility for automatically building large applications, or an implementation of
this utility. [quotations ▼]
8. (slang) Identification or recognition (of identity), especially from police records or evidence.
[quotations ▼]
9. (slang, usually in phrase "easy make") Past, present or future target of seduction (usually female).
[quotations ▼]
10. (slang, military) A promotion. [quotations ▼]
11. A home-made project [quotations ▼]
12. (card games) Turn to declare the trump for a hand (in bridge), or to shuffle the cards. [quotations ▼]
13. (basketball) A made basket.
14. (physics) The closing of an electrical circuit. [quotations ▼]

Synonyms
(brand): brand; type; manufacturer
(origin): origin; manufacture
(personal character): makeup, disposition, character; type, way
(act or process of making): making; manufacture; manufacturing; production
(construction): construction; manufacture
(quantity produced): production; output
(recognition): ID, identification
(target of seduction): lay

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(closing circuit): closing; completion; actuation

Translations
±brand [show ▼]

Etymology 2

From Middle English make, imake, from Old English ġemaca ‎(“a mate, an equal, companion, peer”‎),
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”‎). See also match.

Noun

make (plural makes)

1. (UK, dialectal) Mate; a spouse or companion; a match. [quotations ▼]

Etymology 3

Uncertain.

Alternative forms

meck (Scotland)

Noun

make (plural makes)

1. (Scotland, Ireland, Northern England, now rare) A halfpenny. [from 16th c.] [quotations ▼]

Etymology 4

Origin unclear.

Noun

make (plural makes)

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1. (East Anglia, Essex, obsolete) An agricultural tool resembling a scythe, used to cut (harvest)
certain plants such as peas, reeds, or tares. [quotations ▼]

References
make (https://www.onelook.com/?w=make&ls=a) at OneLook Dictionary Search
make (http://triggs.djvu.org/century-dictionary.com/nph-chw.php?query=make&type=dicts) in The
Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911

Anagrams
kame, meak

Dutch

Pronunciation

IPA(key): /ˈmaːkə/
Audio 0:01

Verb

make

1. (archaic) singular present subjunctive of maken

Hawaiian

Etymology

From Proto-Polynesian *mate, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *m-atay, *atay, from Proto-

Austronesian *m-aCay, *aCay (compare Cebuano matay, Chamorro matai, Fijian mate,, Ilocano
matay, Indonesian mati, Javanese mati, Kapampangan mate, mete, Malagasy maty, Maori mate,
Rapa Nui mate, Tagalog matay, Tahitian mate).

Noun

make

1. death

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2. peril

Verb

make

1. (stative) to die; dead

2. (stative) to faint

Japanese

Romanization

make

1. Rōmaji transcription of まけ

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old English maca, ġemaca, from Proto-West Germanic *makō, *gamakō, from Proto-
Germanic *makô. Compare macche ‎(“bride, equal”‎).

Alternative forms
mac, mak, ymake
ȝemace, imake (early)

Pronunciation

IPA(key): /ˈmaːk(ə)/, /ˈmak(ə)/, /iˈmaːk(ə)/

Noun

make (plural makes or (early) imaken)

1. A bride or mate; a romantic partner.

2. A lover; a sexual partner.
3. An equal or match.
4. A comrade or companion.

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5. (rare) A competitor or opponent.

Derived terms
makeles

Descendants
English: make (dialectal)
Scots: make, maik, mak

References
“imāke, n. (https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/middle-english-dictionary/dictionary/MED26580)”, in MED
Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
“māke, n.(1). (https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/middle-english-dictionary/dictionary/MED26580)”, in
MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Etymology 2

A back-formation from maken.

Alternative forms
mak

Pronunciation

IPA(key): /ˈmaːk(ə)/, /ˈmak(ə)/, /iˈmaːk(ə)/

Noun

make (uncountable)

1. make (manner of manufacture or design)

2. (rare) effort, behaviour

Descendants
English: make

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Scots: mak

References
“māke, n.(2). (https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/middle-english-dictionary/dictionary/MED26581)”, in
MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Etymology 3

Verb

make

1. Alternative form of maken

(Can we find and add a quotation of Chaucer to this entry?)

Moore

Etymology

Compare Farefare makɛ

Pronunciation

/má.kè/

Verb

make

1. to measure, to weigh
2. to compare oneself with

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

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From Old Norse maki.

Noun

make m (definite singular maken, indefinite plural maker, definite plural makene)

1. a mate (especially animals and birds), a spouse

2. an equal, match, peer
3. one of a pair (e.g. shoe, sock)
4. something that is similar or alike

Derived terms
ektemake
har du sett på maken

References
“make” (https://ordbokene.no/bm/search?q=make) in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Old Norse maki.

Noun

make m (definite singular maken, indefinite plural makar, definite plural makane)

1. a mate (especially animals and birds), a spouse

2. an equal, match, peer
3. one of a pair (e.g. shoe, sock)
4. something that is similar or alike

Derived terms
ektemake

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har du sett på maken

References
“make” (https://ordbokene.no/nn/search?q=make) in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Swazi

Noun

máke class 1a (plural bómáke class 2a)

1. my mother

Inflection
This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Swedish maki, from Old Norse maki, from Proto-Germanic *makô. Doublet of maka.

Pronunciation

IPA(key): /ˈmɑːˌkɛ/
audio 0:02

Noun

make c

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1. (slightly archaistic or formal) a spouse, a husband, a married man (mostly referring to a specific
relation)

Hon hade inte sett sin make på hela dagen.

She had not seen her husband all day.

Makarna hade råkat ta in på samma hotell.

The man and his wife happened to board at the same hotel.

2. something alike

Restaurangen serverade sillrätter jag aldrig sett maken till

The restaurant served herring dishes I've never seen the likes of

Ingen hade sett svärdets make

Nobody had seen a sword like this

Declension
Declension of make [more ▼]

Synonyms
man

Antonyms
fru
hustru
maka

Tabaru

Pronunciation

IPA(key): [ˈma.ke]

Verb

make

1. (transitive) to see
2. (transitive) to meet

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3. (transitive) to find, come across

womimake ― he found her

References
Edward A. Kotynski (1988), “Tabaru phonology and morphology (https://doi.org/10.31356/silwp.vol
32.06)”, in Work Papers of the Summer Institute of Linguistics, University of North Dakota
Session, volume 32, Summer Institute of Linguistics

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