make way
Idioms-
Allow room for passage, move aside, as in Please make way for the wheelchair . This expression was first recorded about 1200.
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Also, make way for . Leave room for a successor or substitute, as in It's time he retired and made way for some younger professor . [Mid-1700s]
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Progress, advance, as in Is this enterprise making way? [Late 1500s] For a synonym, see make headway .
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.
Liber said at least 25 villages will be demolished to make way for it.
From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026
GM resurrected its beloved Chevrolet Bolt earlier this year but decided to curtail production to one shift instead of two, and will phase the vehicle out in 2027 to make way for gas-powered vehicles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
The Galaxy’s first substitution came in the 68th minute, when Lozano left the field to make way for Robert Taylor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026
“We have to make way for the future,” Melton told city residents during a recent presentation of the demolition plans, sparking applause.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
Entering the Abbey, the party stopped to make way for a pretty little fieldmouse bearing a tray.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
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.
