Do vs. Make

Hi, guys!

Today I’ll do you a favour and help you in making the right choice between one of the most confusing pairs of words in English “DO” and “MAKE”.

Compare these examples and their Russian translation:

It is rather difficult to decide where to use MAKE and where to use DO on the basis of their meanings.

In the lesson today we will learn typical word combinations and phrases with the verbs MAKE and DO.

The verb Do can function as the main verb – делать, выполнять.

Could you do me a favour?

He does his work very well.

DO can also function as an auxiliary verb. DO helps main verbs to form questions and short answers in the simple present (do/does) and simple past (did).

He speaks English. – Does he speak English? Yes, he does/ No, he doesn’t.

He had breakfast in the morning. – Did he have breakfast in the morning. Yes, he did/ No, he didn’t.

They often appear in the same sentence:

What does she do at the weekend?

Did you do your homework yesterday?

1. “Do” for General Ideas

We use the verb “do” when we speak about things in general. In other words, when we do not exactly name an activity. This form is often used with the words thing, something, nothing, anything, everything.

(выполнять какое-то действие, заниматься чем-то, какой-то деятельностью)

Doing nothing seems to be his hobby.

What can I do for you?

She's fed up with doing everything herself. She needs some help.

NOTE: What do you do? = What's your job?

2. Do is used when talking about work of any kind, jobs or tasks.

Note, that they do not produce any object. do one's work; do one's job; do odd jobs; do one's duty; do business with someone; do research;

Let's do the housework quickly this morning, then we can go out for lunch.

The pupils did a great job with this project. It's excellent.

Have you finished doing puzzles?

Her little son is learning to do sums

3. We sometimes use DO to replace a verb when the meaning is clear or obvious. This is more common in informal spoken English.

I need some time to do my hair. (do is used instead of brush).

They did twenty-three miles in two days. (traveled, covered, walked twenty-three miles).

You do the beds, and I'll do the floor. (You make the beds, and I'll wash the floor).

4. Do in the meaning of “be enough”. - быть достаточным.

There are many expressions that don't follow the rules. Here are some of the most common.

Main meanings of the verb MAKE - создавать, изготовить, производить, строить.

My grandma makes the best apple pie.

This jar is made of glass.

The company makes iphones.

The verb MAKE is used in a large number of idiomatic expressions.

Make yourself at home.

Clothes make the man

If there is no sugar for the tea, we will have to make do with jam.

MAKE is also a very common phrasal verb.

She takes ages to make up in the morning.

I can’t make out what he is saying.

Morning exercises make for good health.

1. Make for Constructing, Building, Creating

First of all, we use MAKE to express an activity that creates something that you can touch:

Make cars; make jewelry; make paper; make furniture; make tables; make toys; make bricks; make hats; make clothes; make films;

SpaceX company makes space rockets.

The fashion designer made a new collection of clothes.

Ridley Scott made a well-known film “Gladiator”.

Make is also used to indicate the origin or material that are used to create something.

The watches were made in Switzeland.

This swimming suit is made of elastic material.

Made in China.

2. Make is also used for producing an action or reaction.

“Wow – just looking at that triple chocolate cake makes my mouth water”.

He makes me laugh all the time.

Her words made him very angry.

3. We use make after certain nouns for plans and decisions.

Make a decision; make a choice; make a wish; make a will; make laws; make notes; make plans; make changes; make inquiries; make an appointment; make a date; make a reservation; make arrangements.

It took me a lot of time to make my final choice.

He made arrangements with her for next week.

Close your eyes and make a wish.

It's too early to make plans for the summer.

4. Make is used with nouns about speaking and sounds.

Make a suggestion; make an assumption; make a guess; make an offer; make a promise; make a request; make a complaint; make a statement; make a speech.

She is making too much noise.

The new mayor made a promise to recondition the roads in the city.

Let me make a telephone call.

The Queen made a long speech at the meeting.

5. We use Make speaking about Food, Drinks, Meals.

Make food, make a meal, make lunch, make an omelette make soup, make a sandwich make pizza, make a cake, make coffee, make apple juice, make a drink, make a cocktail.

The chef made a delicious meal for guests.

I made a cup of coffee to cheer myself up.

She made a traditional turkey for Thanksgiving day.

Here is the list of some fixed expressions that don’t really follow any rule. so you have to learn them.

And finally let’s sum up the information of the lesson.

First of all you should remember that:

When we use Do we do not produce any physical object.

While Make is used to create something that you can touch.

Let’s compare Do and Make in the following examples:

Don’t forget to make a cake for the party. – Не забудь приготовить торт к вечеринке.

Sure. I’ll do it as soon as I get back home. – Конечно. Приготовлю, как только буду дома.

In the first sentence we use MAKE because we create something (a cake) ourselves.

In the answer we replaced MAKE for DO because the meaning is clear or obvious.

Look through the chart below and say what verb we usually use Make or Do in these cases.

Phew! We’ve done a great job today!

Hopefully the information of the lesson was useful to you, guys. You know the difference between Do and Make and won’t make mistakes anymore.

Practice your grammar skills because practice makes perfect.