manufacture
Americannoun
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manufactures
plural
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the making of goods or wares by manual labor or by machinery, especially on a large scale.
the manufacture of television sets.
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the making or producing of anything; generation.
the manufacture of body cells.
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the thing or material manufactured; product.
Plastic is an important manufacture.
verb (used with object)
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manufactures,
present (3rd person singular)
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manufactured,
past participle, past
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manufacturing
present participle
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to make or produce by hand or machinery, especially on a large scale.
- Synonyms:
- build
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to work up (material) into form for use.
to manufacture cotton.
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to invent fictitiously; fabricate; concoct.
to manufacture an account of the incident.
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to produce in a mechanical way without inspiration or originality.
to manufacture a daily quota of poetry.
verb
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to process or make (a product) from a raw material, esp as a large-scale operation using machinery
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(tr) to invent or concoct
to manufacture an excuse
noun
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the production of goods, esp by industrial processes
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a manufactured product
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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
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manufacturingnoun
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nonmanufacturenoun
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nonmanufacturingnoun
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semimanufacturingnoun
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premanufactureverb (used with object)
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manufacturableadjective
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manufacturaladjective
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nonmanufacturedadjective
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semimanufacturedadjective
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unmanufacturableadjective
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unmanufacturedadjective
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well-manufacturedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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manufacturesimple
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manufacturessimple
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have manufacturedperfect
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has manufacturedperfect
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am manufacturingprogressive
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are manufacturingprogressive
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is manufacturingprogressive
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have been manufacturingperfect progressive
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has been manufacturingperfect progressive
Past
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manufacturedsimple
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had manufacturedperfect
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was manufacturingprogressive
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were manufacturingprogressive
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had been manufacturingperfect progressive
Future
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.”
Vocabulary lists containing manufacture
Make Do: Fac
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Automobiles
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The Industrial Revolution - Introductory
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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.
See Examples For:
Concerns have been compounded by the decision to manufacture the upcoming SUV -- developed in partnership with Leapmotor -- in Zaragoza, Spain, rather than in Ruesselsheim.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 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
“If you trace the AI supply chain upstream, from models to chips to the machines that manufacture them, each layer becomes increasingly critical and constrained,” Stephanie Zhan, a partner at Sequoia, said in a statement.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
But the administration has also said it is ramping up production, with Hegseth saying the US was working quickly to manufacture more weapons.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
It was a serene and slow-paced place, unlike the busy centers of manufacture and distribution where the daily work of the community occurred.
From "The Giver" by Lois Lowry
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
The firm designs, manufactures, launches, and operates products and services built on cutting-edge technologies, including the rockets and spacecraft.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
Boeing, which manufactures the Dreamliner, has declined to comment.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 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
District 2 not only manufactures weaponry, it trains and even supplies Peacekeepers.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
The new flu vaccine, manufactured by Moderna, is called mFLUSIVA and made for adults age 50 and up.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Chatter’s Massachusetts-based startup is developing components that will go into sodium-ion batteries manufactured by other companies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
"Additionally, large amounts are being manufactured and shipped to the US as needed."
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
The FDA also rejected several drugs developed by other companies that are manufactured at the facility, corporate filings show.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
Without synthetics, processed foods like TV dinners just can’t be manufactured.
From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan
They adapt the material to a lithography-based manufacturing method suitable for making devices on wafers.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026
Less than two months later, says Egyed, Musk announced he wanted to put a semiconductor manufacturing facility in the area—and not just any facility, but the largest factory ever built.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026
On the economic front, we’ll see Fed minutes, housing-market data, and readings on manufacturing and services activity.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
The Institute for Supply Management’s purchasing index, a broad gauge of manufacturing activity, has been above the threshold for manufacturing-sector expansion for seven straight months.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
But because most manufacturing plants were in the North, it was better able to supply its army throughout the war.
From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly
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.
