manufacture

American  

[man-yuh-fak-cher, man-uh-] / ˌmæn jəˈfæk tʃər, ˌmæn ə- /

noun

• manufactures
  plural

1. the making of goods or wares by manual labor or by machinery, especially on a large scale.

   the manufacture of television sets.

2. the making or producing of anything; generation.

   the manufacture of body cells.

3. the thing or material manufactured; product.

   Plastic is an important manufacture.

---

verb (used with object)

• manufactures,
  present (3rd person singular)
• manufactured,
  past participle,  past
• manufacturing
  present participle

1. to make or produce by hand or machinery, especially on a large scale.

   Synonyms:

   build

2. to work up (material) into form for use.

   to manufacture cotton.

3. to invent fictitiously; fabricate; concoct.

   to manufacture an account of the incident.

4. to produce in a mechanical way without inspiration or originality.

   to manufacture a daily quota of poetry.

manufacture British  

/ ˌmænjʊˈfæktʃə /

verb

1. to process or make (a product) from a raw material, esp as a large-scale operation using machinery

2. (tr) to invent or concoct

   to manufacture an excuse

---

noun

1. the production of goods, esp by industrial processes

2. a manufactured product

3. the creation or production of anything

Synonym Usage

Manufacture, assemble, fabricate apply to processes in industry. Manufacture, originally to make by hand, now means to make by machine or by industrial process: to manufacture rubber tires. To assemble is to fit together the manufactured parts of something mechanical: to assemble an automobile. To fabricate is to construct or build by fitting standardized parts together: to fabricate houses. See also make ¹.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• manufacturing
  noun
• nonmanufacture
  noun
• nonmanufacturing
  noun
• semimanufacturing
  noun
• premanufacture
  verb (used with object)
• manufacturable
  adjective
• manufactural
  adjective
• nonmanufactured
  adjective
• semimanufactured
  adjective
• unmanufacturable
  adjective
• unmanufactured
  adjective
• well-manufactured
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• manufactures
  plural

Participles

• manufacturing
  present
• manufactured
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• manufacture
  simple
• manufactures
  simple
• have manufactured
  perfect
• has manufactured
  perfect
• am manufacturing
  progressive
• are manufacturing
  progressive
• is manufacturing
  progressive
• have been manufacturing
  perfect progressive
• has been manufacturing
  perfect progressive

Past

• manufactured
  simple
• had manufactured
  perfect
• was manufacturing
  progressive
• were manufacturing
  progressive
• had been manufacturing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will manufacture
  simple
• will have manufactured
  perfect
• will be manufacturing
  progressive
• will have been manufacturing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of manufacture

First recorded in 1560–70; from Middle French manufacture “the action or process of making; a factory,” equivalent to Latin manū “by hand”, ablative singular of manus “hand” + Middle French facture “making, construction” (from Late Latin factūra “action of creating, a creation, piece of handiwork,” from Latin factūra “act of fashioning; metal working,” a derivative of facere “to make, do”); the verb is derivative of the noun

Explanation

To manufacture something, is to make or construct it, usually for industry and sale. Unless you make all your own clothes, a company probably had to manufacture them. Manufacture is generally associated with industry and factories. Henry Ford, for instance, revolutionized industry by using assembly lines to manufacture Model Ts. But manufacture can also be used for the natural word, like bees that manufacture honey. Occasionally it use used more generally to mean to construct by putting parts together. And in a pinch, you can manufacture — or make — the truth, which is a creative way to say “lie.”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

manufacture manufactures manufactured manufacturing

The minerals are used to manufacture powerful magnets used in electric vehicles and wind turbines, but also in drones and fighter jets.

From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026

Before going viral, the company had spent years learning how to manufacture at scale, train staff, export products and supply major retailers.

From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026

PHAs serve as microbial energy and carbon reserves, but they are also used to manufacture biodegradable plastics.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026

The stakes are especially high for Chinese brands hoping to sell directly to consumers rather than just manufacture goods for local companies.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026

Most items only cost a few credits, but since they cost nothing for GSS to manufacture, it was all profit.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Bream said the Modesto facility, which finishes and manufactures several types of beverage closures, will remain in operation.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

Heated driveways cost anywhere from $4,800 and $15,000 to install, and an additional $50 to $300 per month in utility bills to operate, according to HeatTrak, a company that manufactures heated snow- and ice-melting mats.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026

Strong demand for AI systems pushed up sales forecasts and drove a gain in second-quarter profits Wednesday at Dutch tech giant ASML, which manufactures chip-making machines to power the tech industry.

From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026

Today, the company consists of two main businesses: its product segment, which designs and sells its own chips, mainly CPUs for personal computers; and its foundry, which manufactures chips in the U.S.,

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026

“Outside peoples already concede our material greatness and that we are well nigh supreme in manufactures and commerce,” he wrote.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

Canadian manufactured goods prices were driven higher by a 6.4% monthly increase in energy and petroleum prices.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

The conglomerate also owns Clayton Homes, a maker of manufactured homes, and other housing-related businesses.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026

Interest in PHAs has grown because they are increasingly being manufactured as sustainable alternatives to conventional plastics.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026

They sold gold, ivory and ultimately enslaved Africans, often those captured in local conflicts, in exchange for the manufactured goods brought mainly by the British and Dutch, including textiles, alcohol and guns.

From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026

An animal might not question it, but a human would see hands had manufactured it quickly enough.

From "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins

A related process plays an important role in manufacturing optical fibers.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 22, 2026

The province, which has a large manufacturing and vehicle sector, has been among the hardest hit regions in this trade dispute.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026

U.S. economic data due Friday include the flash manufacturing and services purchasing managers’ indexes for August, released at 9:45 a.m.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026

U.S. manufacturing could be headed for an AI-fueled revival.

From Barron's ● Aug. 21, 2026

For instance, when he was on his tour of the Incandesto! manufacturing facility and had fallen into the vat of Incandesto!, he hadn't said a single word.

From "Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures" by Kate DiCamillo

Related Words

• assemble
• complete
• construct
• create
• fabricate
• mass-produce
• synthesize