Make and do

When to use make and when to use do can often be confusing. There are some rules that you need to learn to know when to use each one but sometimes there are no rules and you just have to learn them!

When to use make:

Make is usually used to express an activity that creates something that you can touch. It often, but not always, expresses the idea of construction or creation.

Examples:

Make a cup of tea
Make a model
Make a cake

Expressions with make:

Sometimes make doesn't imply construction or creation. There are lots of expressions that use make that simply need to be learned:

When to use do:

Do is used for activities, actions and tasks. Generally, but not always, these actions produce no physical result. Do can be used to talk about work.

Do your work.
What do you do?
Do a project

Do is also used for general ideas or as a substitute for other verbs:

I am not doing anything at the moment
I have to do something
I do everything for you

Expressions with do:

Just like make there are certain expressions with do that must be learned: