B1business

Make vs Do - Business English

Type your answer in each blank and press Enter to check it, or use Check answers below. A cue in (brackets) is the word to put in the right form.

Make and do confuse almost every learner, because many languages cover both with a single verb. As a rough guide, use do for tasks, jobs and activities, especially routine or unspecified ones: you do the work, do your job, do some research, do the paperwork. Use make when you produce, create or cause a result: you make a product, make a plan, make a profit, make a decision. So at work you do a task but you make a choice about how to do it. Be careful, though: a large number of these pairings are fixed collocations that you simply have to learn, and they don't always follow the logic. We say do business, do someone a favour and do your best, but make an effort, make progress, make a mistake and make an arrangement. In professional English a few are especially worth memorising: make a decision, make an appointment, make a complaint, do business with someone, and do a deal. The most common pitfall is reaching for the word that matches your first language rather than the English collocation. When you learn a new noun, learn whether it takes make or do at the same time. Some nouns take both with a slight difference: you make a presentation (deliver it) or do a presentation (the more informal phrasing). Others take only one: make sense is correct, but do sense is not.

Let's practise. Type each answer and press Enter, I'll check it with you.

  1. We need to (make/do) a decision about the budget by Friday.
  2. Could you (make/do) me a favor and check these figures?
  3. The marketing team is (make/do) a presentation for the new client.
  4. He always (make/do) his best to meet every deadline.
  5. I have to (make/do) a phone call before the meeting starts.
  6. They are (make/do) research on the current market trends.
  7. She needs to (make/do) an appointment with the CEO.
  8. We must (make/do) our due diligence before signing the contract.
  9. The manager (make/do) a mistake in the quarterly report.
  10. Please (make/do) the paperwork as soon as possible.
  11. We should (make/do) an effort to improve our communication.
  12. They (make/do) a lot of business in Southeast Asia.
  13. I need to (make/do) some changes to the project plan.
  14. He is (make/do) a great job managing the new team.
  15. Can we (make/do) a suggestion regarding the workflow?
  16. The company is (make/do) a huge profit this year.
  17. You need to (make/do) some preparation before the negotiation.
  18. She (make/do) a complaint about the service yesterday.
  19. Who is going to (make/do) the filing next week?
  20. We need to (make/do) progress on this task immediately.
  21. The accountant is (make/do) the payroll right now.
  22. It is difficult to (make/do) an agreement under these terms.
  23. They (make/do) an audit of the financial records last month.
  24. I will (make/do) sure that the client receives the email.
  25. We are (make/do) everything we can to resolve the issue.

Common questions

What is the basic difference between make and do?

Use do for tasks, jobs and activities, often routine: do the work, do your homework, do some research. Use make to produce, create or cause a result: make a product, make a plan, make a profit. For example, you do the analysis, then you make a recommendation based on it. Many pairings are fixed, so check each one.

Which common business expressions use make and which use do?

Make: make a decision, make an appointment, make a complaint, make an offer, make progress, make an effort, make a profit. Do: do business with a client, do a deal, do the paperwork, do your job, do market research. For instance: "We did some research, then made an offer." Learn these as fixed phrases rather than from the rule alone.

Do I make a mistake or do a mistake?

You make a mistake, never "do a mistake". This is a fixed collocation, so the produce/result logic still helps: a mistake is something you cause to happen. The same pattern gives make an error and make a decision. A useful tip: whenever you learn a noun like mistake, appointment or progress, learn the verb that goes with it at the same time.