Do vs. Make 
English Vocabulary
Do and Make are two verbs which frequently confuse 
students.(done = washed)I'll do the kitchen if you do the lawns (do = clean, do = 
mow)
Remember Do can also be as an auxiliary verb (for making 
questions in the present tense 
- Do you like chocolate?) Here we 
will be talking about Do as a normal verb.--------&&--------
Do vs. Make Comparison
The difference between do and mak
e
Do
:o Work, Jobs and Tasks: 
Do the housework, the homework, a good task o Non-Specific Activities: 
Do something, nothing, anything, everything o Replace Verb when Obvious:
Do your hair, the dishes, the exam, the laundry
------Make
:
o Food, Drink and Meals:
Make a cake, breakfast
, dinner
, a cup of coffee
o Product Material /Origin
:
Made of gold
, in China, by me
, from grapes
o Produce a Reaction
Make your eyes water, you sleepy, you happy, you smile o Plans and Decisions:
Make arrangement, a choice
, a decision
, a plan
o Speaking and Sounds
Make a noise, a comment
, a speech
, a suggestion
--------&&--------
A Short list for common words used with 
"Do" and "Make":
Do
: a job, work, damage, harm, a quiz, homework, studies, sport, 
hobby, vest, good, better, wrong, exercise, project, a report, 
research, washing, shopping, favor, heart transplant, drugs, post 
graduates, ironing 
--------&&--------
Make
: a decision, a suggestion, a speech, phone call, parts for, 
the bed, mistake, no effort, make use of, make sure, an offer, 
dinner, money, fun of, a discovery, promise, prediction, friends,o The watches were made in Switzerland
We also use Make for producing an action or reaction
:
o Onions make your eyes water.Make is for producing, constructing, creating or 
building something new.It is also used to indicate the origin of a product or the 
materials that are used to make something.--------&&--------
o Zero and definite article with languages and people o If we use the same word for the language and the 
people who live in the country, we use zero articles with 
the language and the definite article with the people.DO is used when we refer to activities in general without 
being specific.DO is used as follows:
1.DO is used when talking about work, jobs or tasks.o I have guests visiting tonight so I should start doing the 
housework now.o I wouldn't like to do that job.In these cases, we normally use words like thing, 
something, nothing, anything, everything etc.I've got things to do!We sometimes use DO to replace a verb when the meaning 
is clear or obvious.This is more common in informal spoken 
English: o Do I need to do my hair?o The house was made of adobe.o Wine is made from grapes.You make before certain nouns about plans and decisions
:
o He has made arrangements to finish work early.We use Make with nouns about speaking and certain sounds
:o She made a nice comment about my dress.We use Make with Food, Drink and Meals
:
o
I made a cake for her birthday.Here we will learn about the difference 
between Do and Make and when to use each one.When do you use DO?Note, 
they do not produce any physical object.o Have you done your homework?2.o Hurry up!o Don't just stand there - do something!o Is there anything I can do to help you?3.(do = brush or comb) o Have you done the dishes yet?--------&&--------
When Do You Use Make?o His wedding ring is made of gold.o You make me happy.o It's not my fault.My brother made me do it!o They're making plans for the weekend.o You need to make a decision right now.o The baby is asleep so don't make any noise.