making

American  

[mey-king] / ˈmeɪ kɪŋ /

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.

      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.

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idioms

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

   Our space scientists see history in the making.

making British  

/ ˈmeɪkɪŋ /

noun

1. 1. the act of a person or thing that makes or the process of being made

   2. ( in combination )

      watchmaking

2. to cause the success of

3. 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

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• self-making
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of making

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

Example Sentences

Cloud computing is dominated by US platforms with the three biggest -- Microsoft's Azure, Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud -- making up 70 percent of the European market.

From Barron's • Jun. 3, 2026

Henry Asher, president of the Northstar Group, which owns shares of Berkshire, said he is looking past the stock’s declines and hopes Abel will continue making deals.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 3, 2026

At this point, Floridians were making a mass exodus from the venue, and Robinson continued to drive home his point as they made their way toward the exits.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 2, 2026

But before making the big decision, he is just looking forward to returning to Pakistan and bringing gifts from Dubai for his family: Barbie dolls for his daughters and a toy airplane for his son.

From BBC • Jun. 2, 2026

Just as we’re making camp, after a long trek, he’ll arrive with dinner.

From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Related Words

• formulation