A. Phrasal verbs with do and make

phrasal verb	meaning	example
do without	manage without	We'll have to do without a holiday this year as money is so short.
do away with	abolish, get rid of	It should be our ambition to do away with poverty in the world.
make for	move in the direction of	Let's make for the city centre and look for a restaurant there.
make of	think (opinion)	What do you make of the new software?
make off	leave hurriedly	He made off as soon as he heard their car turn into the drive.
make up for	compensate for	The superb food at the hotel made up for the uncomfortable rooms.

B. Meanings of phrasal verbs

Some phrasal verbs have a number of different meanings, e.g. do up can mean not only 'fasten' but also 'renovate' and 'put into a bundle'. Similarly, make out can mean 'claim', 'manage to see' and 'understand'; make up can mean 'compose' or 'invent'; it can also mean 'constitute' or 'form'; 'put cosmetics on', 'prepare by mixing together various ingredients' and 'make something more numerous or complete'.

C. Collocations with do and make

There are a lot of other common collocations based on do and make. Note that most combinations referring to activities, work or duty use do whereas those which lead to an end product (e.g. tea, a cake, a noise, a toy boat, a profit) use make.

You do: your homework / the housework / some gardening / exercise / the washing-up / your best / the shopping / the cooking / business with ..., and so on.

You make: a cup of tea / arrangements / an agreement / a suggestion / a decision / war / an attempt / a phone call / the best of ... / an effort / an excuse / a mistake / a profit / a loss / love / the most of / a noise / a good or bad impression / a success of ... / allowances for ...¹ / a gesture / a face / fun of ... / a fuss of ...² / a go (a success) of ..., and so on.

Common mistakes

We say: When I do my homework, I try not to make too many mistakes. (NOT When I make my homework, I try not to do too many mistakes.)