make-or-break
[ meyk-er-breyk ]
/ ˈmeɪk ərˈbreɪk /
adjective
either completely successful or utterly disastrous: a make-or-break marketing policy.
RELATED CONTENT
Imminent, Immanent, Or Eminent?When something is imminent, that means it’s impending. Immanent isn’t a typo, it means inherent. Eminent means distinguished. Imminent Imminent means likely to occur at any moment or impending. It refers to something that’s approaching, about to happen, anticipated, or threatening to occur. For example, in Coquette, author Frank Swinnerton uses the word to describe someone’s arrival: “While she was waiting, she one day received …
Sherbet Or Sherbert?In efforts to beat the summer heat, you may have encountered two different spellings of the same scrumptious treat: sherbet and sherbert. Why do both forms exist, and which one is correct? Sherbet (pronounced “shur-bit”) is the standard American spelling for the frozen mixture made from fruit and an additive of either milk, egg white, or gelatin. It comes from the name of a Persian drink …
Nearby words
make with, make-ahead, make-and-break, make-believe, make-do, make-or-break, make-peace, make-ready, make-up, make-work, makeba
Origin of make-or-break
First recorded in 1915–20
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Idioms and Phrases with make or break
make or break
Cause either total success or total ruin, as in This assignment will make or break her as a reporter. This rhyming expression, first recorded in Charles Dickens's Barnaby Rudge (1840), has largely replaced the much older (16th-century) alliterative synonym make or mar, at least in America.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.