Phrasal Verbs with Make might be more challenging than others, especially “make up” since it has multiple meanings. You can study them separately as suggested below, and also find a comprehensive list and the exercises at the bottom of the page.
Phrasal Verbs with Make Up
| Phrasal Verb | Separable | Meaning | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|
| make up (something) | Yes | invent a story, excuse, lie | He made up an excuse for being late. |
| make up (someone / oneself) | Yes (usually reflexive) | apply cosmetics | She made herself up before the party. |
| make up | No | constitute, form, represent | Women make up 60% of the workforce. |
| make up (with someone) | No | reconcile after an argument | They finally made up after the fight. |
| make up for | No | compensate for something | I’ll make up for my mistake. |
| make up to (someone) | No | try to please someone (often for advantage) | He’s making up to the manager for a promotion. |
Make Up Exercise
Phrasal Verbs with Make – B2-C1
| Phrasal Verb | Separable | Meaning | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|
| make for | No | move towards / contribute to | She made for the exit when she heard the alarm. |
| make into | Yes | transform into something | They made the garage into a studio. |
| make of (something) | No | understand or interpret | What do you make of his decision? |
| make off (with) | No | escape, especially after stealing | The thief made off with the wallet. |
| make out | Yes | understand with difficulty / kiss romantically / claim | I couldn’t make out what he said. |
| make (someone) out | Yes | recognise or understand someone | I can’t make him out in the dark. |
| make over (something) | Yes | renovate / transfer ownership | They made over the house last year. |
| make towards | No | move in the direction of | She made towards the door quietly. |
Exercise B2-C1
List of Phrasal Verbs with Make
Here’s a comprehensive list of phrasal verbs with make, their meaning, if they can be split by an object, and an example.
| Phrasal Verb | Split | Meaning | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|
| make for | Never | move towards *** contribute to; result in | She made for the exit when the alarm rang. *** Clear communication makes for effective teamwork. |
| make into | Possible | transform into something | They made the garage into an office. |
| make of (something) | Never | understand; interpret | What do you make of his reaction? |
| make off (with) | Never | escape; steal and escape with something | The suspect made off with the cash before anyone noticed. |
| make out | meaning: understand with difficulty – Never *** meaning: kiss romantically – Never *** meaning: falsely claim – Possible | understand with difficulty *** kiss romantically *** falsely claim | I couldn’t make out what he was saying. *** They were making out in the cinema. *** He makes out that he’s the victim. |
| make (someone) out | Always | recognize or understand someone clearly | I couldn’t make her out in the crowd. |
| make over (something) | Possible | renovate *** transfer ownership | They made over the house last year. *** She made over the property to her children. |
| make towards | Never | move in the direction of | She quietly made towards the door. |
| make up | meaning: invent – Possible *** meaning: apply cosmetics – Possible, often reflexive *** meaning: constitute – Never | invent (a story, excuse, lie) *** apply cosmetics *** constitute; form; represent | He made up an excuse for being late. *** She made herself up before the party. *** Students make up most of the audience. |
| make up (with someone) | Never | reconcile after an argument | They finally made up after the disagreement. |
| make up for | Never | compensate for something | She worked late to make up for the delay. |
| make up to (someone) | Never | try to please someone (often for advantage) | He’s making up to the director for a promotion. |
In the split column you’ll find information about separating them, if it show “Always” it means we always split the phrasal verb to add an object. “Possible” means that you can separate it or not. Finally, “never” means we should never separate that phrasal verb.
Literary or Archaic Phrasal Verbs with make
Some Phrasal Verbs with Make are mostly used in books, not everyday English. They are listed in the table below.
| Expression | Separable | Meaning | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|
| make away with | No | steal and escape with | The pirates made away with the treasure. |
| make after | No | chase | The dog made after the rabbit. |
| make with | No | (informal, dated) hurry up / begin | Make with the explanations! |
Idioms with Make
A phrasal verb is a verb + particle combination that changes meaning and behaves like a verb grammatically. An idiom is a fixed expression whose meaning is not predictable from the individual words. Some Idioms with Make are mistakenly categorized as Phrasal Verbs, here’s a list of the most common.
| Expression | Meaning | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| make way | create space for someone/something | The crowd made way for the ambulance. |
| make do | manage with what is available | We’ll have to make do without heating. |
| make as if | pretend | He made as if he didn’t hear me. |
| make it | succeed / arrive / survive | She finally made it as a lawyer. |
Phrasal Verbs with Make Exercises
More Exercises: ESL-Lounge | UsingEnglish | LearnToday | Live-English | AgendaWeb
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