make out
verb
made out; making out; makes out
transitive verb
1
: to complete (something, such as a printed form) by supplying required information
make out a check
2
: to find or grasp the meaning of
tried to make out what had really happened
3
: to form an opinion or idea about : conclude
how do you make that out
4
a
: to represent as being
made them out to be losers
b
: to pretend to be true
made out that he had never heard of me
5
: to represent or delineate in detail
6
: to see and identify with difficulty or effort : discern
make out a ship through the fog
intransitive verb
1
: get along, fare
how are you making out with the new job
2
a
: to engage in sexual intercourse
b
: neck sense 1
Synonyms
- cope
- do
- fare
- get along
- get by
- get on
- manage
- shift
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
we're not rich, but we're making out all right I can't quite make out what she is trying to say.
Recent Examples on the Web The Webb telescope allowed the researchers to make out carbon dioxide in WASP-39b’s atmosphere for the first time, although NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer telescopes had previously shown that water vapor, sodium and potassium were present. 
Cassidy Jensen, Baltimore Sun, 29 Aug. 2022 Brady's never had cotton candy before and uses that as an excuse to make out with Brie, bless his heart. Sara Netzley, EW.com, 20 July 2022 But remember, Tomer works on commission — so perhaps make out on your own time. Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 21 Apr. 2022 Members of the media and Bartek’s family who watched the video via Zoom feed in a different location of the Justice Center could not make out the audio and had to rely on the attorneys repeating what was said to Legg on the stand. Cory Shaffer, cleveland, 27 July 2022 The officer could just make out the exhausted dog’s nose in the night as the animal barely bobbed above the surface of the water. Fox News, 18 July 2022 Along with a full make out session, there's a ton to unpack in the episode preview. Chaise Sanders, Country Living, 3 June 2022 Wingerter didn’t have time to make out the lines, and for the two-hour visit on their friend’s porch, the intrigue nagged like an itch. Danny Freedman, Outside Online, 8 July 2022 The only shapes that are easy to make out are the headlights, which look like Gollum's bulbous eyes peering out in the dark. Jack Fitzgerald, Car and Driver, 6 July 2022 See More
Cassidy Jensen, Baltimore Sun, 29 Aug. 2022 Brady's never had cotton candy before and uses that as an excuse to make out with Brie, bless his heart. Sara Netzley, EW.com, 20 July 2022 But remember, Tomer works on commission — so perhaps make out on your own time. Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 21 Apr. 2022 Members of the media and Bartek’s family who watched the video via Zoom feed in a different location of the Justice Center could not make out the audio and had to rely on the attorneys repeating what was said to Legg on the stand. Cory Shaffer, cleveland, 27 July 2022 The officer could just make out the exhausted dog’s nose in the night as the animal barely bobbed above the surface of the water. Fox News, 18 July 2022 Along with a full make out session, there's a ton to unpack in the episode preview. Chaise Sanders, Country Living, 3 June 2022 Wingerter didn’t have time to make out the lines, and for the two-hour visit on their friend’s porch, the intrigue nagged like an itch. Danny Freedman, Outside Online, 8 July 2022 The only shapes that are easy to make out are the headlights, which look like Gollum's bulbous eyes peering out in the dark. Jack Fitzgerald, Car and Driver, 6 July 2022 See More Word History
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
making out
verb
1
as in coping
to meet one's day-to-day needs we're not rich, but we're making out all right Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- coping
- making do
- getting along
- getting by
- getting on
- doing
- making shift
- managing
- making ends meet
- surviving
- fending for oneself
- carrying on
- shifting
- faring
- eking out
- affording
- scraping (by or through)
- scraping (out)
- lasting
- scrounging
- contriving
- squeezing
- wringing
- swinging
- wresting
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- falling short
- failing
- collapsing
- petering (out)
- floundering
- fizzling
- declining
- waning
- slumping
- giving up
2
as in understanding
to have a clear idea of I can't quite make out what she is trying to say Synonyms & Similar Words
- understanding
- knowing
- deciphering
- seeing
- recognizing
- comprehending
- grasping
- appreciating
- picking up on
- getting
- tumbling (to)
- cottoning (to or on to)
- catching on (to)
- sensing
- realizing
- taking in
- perceiving
- discerning
- making
- decoding
- conceiving
- savvying
- digging
- beholding
- assimilating
- seizing
- cognizing
- apprehending
- intuiting
- registering
- compassing
- catching
- twigging
- grokking
- absorbing
- digesting
- fathoming
- penetrating
- piercing
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- missing
- misinterpreting
- misunderstanding
- mistaking
- misreading
- misperceiving
- misconstruing
- misconceiving
- misapprehending
3
as in pretending
to take on a false or deceptive appearance he tried to make out that he didn't mind losing his job, but friends suspected he was desperately worried Synonyms & Similar Words
- pretending
- making believe
- letting on
- making a pretense
- making a show
- putting up a front
- putting on an act
- posing
- dissimulating
- dissembling
- putting on
- acting
- playing
- simulating
- masquerading
- affecting
- feigning
- playacting
- shamming
- impersonating
- masking
- concealing
- assuming
- faking
- counterfeiting
- camouflaging
- professing
- disguising
- feinting
- bluffing
4
as in deriving
to form an opinion or reach a conclusion through reasoning and information as best as I can make out, the police were informed of the incident but didn't think it was worth investigating Synonyms & Similar Words
- deriving
- understanding
- deciding
- drawing a conclusion
- reasoning
- inferring
- concluding
- thinking
- extrapolating
- deducing
- guessing
- judging
- assuming
- speculating
- reading
- finding out
- ascertaining
- gathering
- supposing
- interpreting
- doping (out)
- construing
- surmising
- contemplating
- conjecturing
- rationalizing
- philosophizing