making

[ mey-king ]

noun

1. the act of a person or thing that makes:

   The making of a violin requires great skill.

2. structure; constitution; makeup.
3. the means or cause of success or advancement:

   to be the making of someone.

4. Usually makings. capacity or potential:

   He has the makings of a first-rate officer.

5. makings,
   1. material of which something may be made: make:

      the makings for a tossed salad.

   2. Older Slang. paper and tobacco with which to make a hand-rolled cigarette.
6. something made.
7. the quantity made:

   a making of butter.

making

/ ˈmeɪkɪŋ /

noun

1. 1. the act of a person or thing that makes or the process of being made
   2. ( in combination )

      watchmaking

2. be the making of
   be the making of to cause the success of
3. in the making
   in the making in the process of becoming or being made

   a politician in the making

4. something made or the quantity of something made at one time
5. make-up; composition

Other Words From

• self-making adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of making¹

First recorded before 1150; Middle English; Old English macung; make ¹ + -ing ¹

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. in the making, in the process of being made; developing or evolving; growing:

   Our space scientists see history in the making.

Example Sentences

Pennsylvania’s run to the right, however, has been a long time in the making.

From FiveThirtyEight

The TV network groups have differed in how they handle this decision making, according to producers.

From Digiday

While some execs say that ad-hoc decision making happens during good times and bad in advertising, the need to do so has hit “unprecedented levels,” said Mastercard chief marketing and communications officer Raja Rajamannar.

From Digiday

Cassie Kozyrkov is the chief decision scientist at Google, serving as an expert within the company in both data science and decision making, so when Quartz asked her for insights for our field guide on decision making, we cut to the chase.

From Quartz

Here’s a guide to backcountry dessert baking and bread making.

From Outside Online

Everyone out there who says, “Charlie Hebdo provoked,” is making the same fundamental error.

From The Daily Beast

As far as I can tell, this magazine spent as much time making fun of French politicians as it did of Muslims or Islam.

From The Daily Beast

The pulps brought new readers to serious fiction, making it less intimidating with alluring art and low prices.

From The Daily Beast

This is not making the 228,000 residents of Irving, Texas feel very relaxed.

From The Daily Beast

First, they allow Paul to siphon off attention from whichever potential candidate is making news.

From The Daily Beast

She looked so sweet when she said it, standing and smiling there in the middle of the floor, the door-way making a frame for her.

From Project Gutenberg

Sleek finds it far harder work than fortune-making; but he pursues his Will-o'-the-Wisp with untiring energy.

From Project Gutenberg

Besides these, twenty thousand Indians are under the care of secular priests—making a total of two hundred and five thousand.

From Project Gutenberg

Robert Fitzgerald received a patent in England for making salt water fresh.

From Project Gutenberg

So intelligent were her methods that she doubtless had great influence in making the memory of his art enduring.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• formulation