Synonyms of make out

make out

verb

1

as in to cope

to meet one's day-to-day needs

we're not rich, but we're making out all right

Synonyms & Similar Words

• cope
• do
• make do
• make ends meet
• get along
• get by
• get on
• manage
• survive
• make shift
• fare
• shift
• afford
• carry on
• fend for oneself
• eke out
• scrape (by or through)
• last
• scrounge
• contrive
• scrape (out)
• squeeze
• wring
• wrest
• swing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• fall short
• fail
• collapse
• decline
• give up
• flounder
• wane
• slump
• fizzle
• peter (out)

2

as in to understand

to have a clear idea of

I can't quite make out what she is trying to say

Synonyms & Similar Words

• understand
• know
• decipher
• see
• recognize
• appreciate
• comprehend
• grasp
• get
• tumble (to)
• realize
• cotton (to or on to)
• catch on (to)
• perceive
• discern
• make
• sense
• pick up on
• conceive
• seize
• dig
• register
• assimilate
• apprehend
• behold
• twig
• catch
• decode
• compass
• intuit
• take in
• grok
• savvy
• cognize
• absorb
• digest
• fathom
• penetrate
• pierce

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• miss
• misunderstand
• mistake
• misread
• misinterpret
• misconstrue
• misperceive
• misconceive
• misapprehend

3

as in to pretend

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

• pretend
• make believe
• make a show
• let on
• make a pretense
• put on an act
• put up a front
• pose
• dissimulate
• dissemble
• act
• play
• put on
• simulate
• affect
• masquerade
• assume
• conceal
• feign
• fake
• impersonate
• profess
• disguise
• camouflage
• sham
• mask
• counterfeit
• playact
• bluff
• feint

4

as in to derive

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

• derive
• understand
• decide
• conclude
• infer
• think
• deduce
• guess
• reason
• judge
• assume
• extrapolate
• draw a conclusion
• suppose
• speculate
• gather
• read
• ascertain
• find out
• interpret
• surmise
• contemplate
• construe
• rationalize
• conjecture
• philosophize
• dope (out)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of make out

For the past two decades, Boise State and Fresno State have competed almost annually for the right to take home the Milk Can, a roughly 2-foot-tall trophy made out of a 10-gallon dairy milk can. — Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 15 Oct. 2026

The detective found a cashed check for twenty-five grand from the National Enquirer made out to Tom Arnold. — Deborah Day, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026

Likewise, this season, dancers making out at Diesel made spectators part of the performance. — Joan Kennedy, Vogue, 12 Oct. 2026

If the check is made out to the new company's retirement plan, nobody will be able to cash it except the plan sponsor. — Joe Kinsey Outkick, FOXNews.com, 10 Oct. 2026