make good
Idioms-
Carry out successfully, make sure of, as in He made good his escape . This usage was first recorded in 1606.
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Fulfill, as in She made good her promise . This usage was first recorded in Miles Coverdale's 1535 translation of the Bible (II Chronicles 6:16): “Make good unto my father, David ... that which thou hast promised him.”
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Compensate for, make up for, as in They made good the loss . This usage first appeared in William Langland's Piers Ploughman (1377).
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Succeed, as in He made good as a writer . [c. 1900]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Even with lots of questions about a capital-expenditure binge and circular deals, all of the Mag Seven make good money today.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026
He’ll make good on that pledge Thursday when his Kings and the Colorado Avalanche face off in Game 3 of their first-round series at Crypto.com Arena.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026
Separately, BankUnited is on some brokerage analysts’ lists of banks that would make good acquisition targets.
From Barron's • Apr. 16, 2026
"If we're going to make good choices about this technology, we need to understand entirely new types of risk," he told BBC News.
From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026
“She says feisty people make good workers and that we have to pay her rent.”
From "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.