make sense

idiom

1
: to have a clear meaning : to be easy to understand
We read the recommendations and thought they made (perfect) sense.
The instructions don't make any sense (at all).
The instructions make no sense (at all).
You're not making much sense (to me).
2
: to be reasonable
It makes sense to leave early to avoid traffic.
It makes little/no sense to continue.
Why would he do such an awful thing? It makes no sense (to me).

Examples of make sense in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Once embroiled in conflict, participants and spectators layer on more stories to make sense of their relationship to its violent cauldron. Elizabeth D. Samet, Foreign Affairs, 29 Oct. 2025 Outside linebacker Arden Key might make sense as a buy-low trade target. Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 28 Oct. 2025 But to me, beyond even the content, is the fact that this does not make sense. Josh Zajdman, Vogue, 28 Oct. 2025 To make sense out of this tangle of connections and contingencies, many macroscopes employ computational models to reveal the key economic, medical, political, educational, or ecological relationships that are often invisible to all but the experts. Big Think, 27 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for make sense

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Make sense.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/make%20sense. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on make sense

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!