The Phrasal Verb 'Make For' Explained
- 1 day ago
- 8 min read
An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'make for' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context
Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them like a native.
This post is all about a phrasal verb that is relatively less well-known than many others: 'make for'. This nice little phrasal verb is one that can be used to talk about many diverse subjects like cocktails, emergencies and good television. In this post, I will explain its three different meanings for you, with lots of example sentences for each one and also give you a nice little idiom that that features it. So, let's get started and find out exactly what the phrasal verb 'make for' means....
TABLE OF CONTENTSÂ (Click to jump to each one)
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THE BASICS
MAKE FOR: KEY INFORMATION
Usage | Medium |
Number of meanings | 3 |
Past tense forms | Made for / Made for |
Separable? | No |
Let's start the post in the usual way by analysing the individual words that make up the phrasal verb that I will be explaining; in this case 'make' and 'for'.
Make - The verb to make is one that you are likely to have learned very early in your English learning and is extremely common. As a verb, 'to make' has a large number of uses, of which the most common ones are probably 'to create' or 'to form', 'to cause' and 'to force'. Despite how common it is, 'to make' is a verb that is often confusing for English learners as it is often mixed up with the verb 'to do' and common mistakes occur like 'to do a mistake' (for reference it is to make a mistake 😉 ). As with the majority of the most common verbs, 'to make' is irregular....
I am making dinner for my wife this evening.
The children were making a lot of noise.
We made a mistake and ended up losing a lot of money.
My parents made me go to university.
For - The prepositional particle 'for' is not one that is typically found in phrasal verb constructions; in fact this is the first time I have covered it on this website! We use 'for' in English for several different reasons, with perhaps the most common one being to talk about purpose or intended benefit. In other words, we use it to explain why something is done or to describe the person who benefits from something or is helped by it. In addition, we can also use it to talk about the duration of an action and to talk about how much something costs, among other meanings.
The black bin is for normal waste and the green bin is for garden waste.
I have a bought an engagement ring for my girlfriend.
The flight from London to New York lasts for 7 hours.
I paid £300 for this sofa.
Now that we have covered the basics, let's move on to the different meanings that we get when we combine these two words to form the phrasal verb 'make for'....
MEANING 1: Literal
CEFR Language Level | A1 - Beginner |
Usage | Common |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To prepare for, to cook for |
Separable? | Yes |
We are going to start our exploration of the phrasal verb 'make for' with the literal version of the combination of these two words, which is 'to create or make something for the benefit of another person'.
As this one is so literal in meaning, it is not really classed as a true phrasal verb but I wanted to include it in the post just in case you wondered about it. I will keep it short as I am sure that the meaning is one that you are already very familiar with.
When we talk about making something for someone, we are typically referring either to when we make something for them to eat or drink, e.g. a meal, a cup of coffee or a cocktail. Additionally, we could be talking about physically creating something for someone to have or to use, e.g. you might make a jumper for someone by knitting one. One last usage to be aware of is 'to make time for someone', which is commonly used to talk about ensuring that you have enough time in your life to spend with a friend, family member, partner or spouse.
Rita made a cake for her sister’s birthday.
I’ll make some tea for you.
Ron made a sandwich for his son.
Jo and Mike made a special meal for their guests.
Loretta made a scarf for her grandmother.
I will always make time for you, darling!
Note that it is very common for speakers to drop the word 'for' when the indirect object pronoun (me, him, her etc.) comes directly after the word 'make'....
My husband makes me a coffee every morning.
Joseph made her a playlist.
We can also use this literal sense to describe when something is made with a specific purpose. This can be literal or it can be used to describe when one thing is very suitable or even perfect for a purpose.
This knife was made for cutting meat.
This room was made for weddings!
They are the perfect couple; they were made for each other!
MEANING 2: To go towards somewhere
CEFR Language Level | B2 - Upper intermediate |
Usage | Medium |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To head for, to go to, to travel to, to move to |
Separable? | No |
The second meaning of the phrasal verb 'make for' that we will look at in this post is the first of the true phrasal verb meanings and is 'to go towards somewhere'.
Nouns commonly used with this application....
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To clarify this meaning, we use 'make for' when we want to talk about moving in the direction of a specific place or point. However, although this application does mean the same as 'go to', there are some differences in nuance and usage between the two that you should know.
While we use 'go to' in a neutral way to talk about a movement, we tend to use 'make for' more when there is something dramatic, urgent or deliberate about the movement. Consider the following sentences....
When the fire alarm went off, the people went to the exit.
When the fire alarm went off, the people made for the exit.
In sentence 1, the tone is very neutral and is absolutely fine to use, however in the second sentence the tone is more urgent and the idea that is conveyed is that the people moved quickly and directly to the door as a result of the alarm.
The best way that I can explain for when to use 'make for' in this way is when you see or visualise your destination and you go directly towards it with purpose or speed, making reaching this end point your only objective or intention in that moment.
As a result, this application of 'make for' can often be found in stories and descriptive writing and is not as common as the more neutral 'go to'.
On a grammatical note, this application is never separable and must always be followed by the destination or end point (this could be a pronoun like 'it' or 'there' if this is clear from the context).
When the lights suddenly went out, everyone made for the exit.
As the storm grew stronger, we made for shelter.
Hearing footsteps behind him, Steve quickly made for the main road.
The deer froze for a second, then made for the trees.
The hikers checked their map and made for the summit of the hill.
Ben waved goodbye and made for his car.
The children spotted the ice cream van and immediately made for it.
BONUS: The idiom 'to make a beeline for someone'
Admittedly, as a native speaker, I am aware that English has some very strange and bizarre expressions and this idiom that I am going to tell you about now is definitely included in this!
The expression 'to make a beeline for someone / something' is a common saying that people use to talk about when a person or animal goes directly to someone or something, like I have just explained in the previous section.
For example, the moment my brother goes into a pub, he makes a beeline for the bar to get a beer (true fact - he loves beer!) or if you see someone that you want to talk to at a party, you may make a beeline for them and ignore all the other people that you pass on the way.
The kids made a beeline for the swimming pool.
Spotting a familiar face in the crowd, Sandra made a beeline for him.
My wife got home from her run and immediately made a beeline for the fridge.
MEANING 3: To make something possible
CEFR Language Level | C1 - Advanced |
Usage | Medium |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To make possible |
Separable? | No |
The final meaning of 'make for' that I will explain for you is the most advanced of the three and means 'to make something possible'.
When we want to say that something (or a combination of things) contribute to, result in, produce or create something, we can often use 'make for' to express this.
This application is quite formal and can be used to talk about subjects as diverse as movies, football, work and politics. It is generally used to deliver statements and is therefore often used in the simple present tense. Nevertheless, it is a high level usage and one that you could potentially use as a synonym for words like 'result in' or 'creates'.
Good communication makes for a successful relationship.
A clear structure makes for an effective lesson.
Lack of sleep makes for a bad day at work.
Warm weather makes for a perfect picnic.
Too much noise makes for a stressful environment.
Political instability makes for economic uncertainty.
Poor planning rarely makes for successful outcomes.
The argument between the competitors made for brilliant television!
Short deadlines don’t always make for quality work.
We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'make for'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts.
Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'make for'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!!
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THE END