This is one that needs to be added to the idiom dictionaries... I can't even find it on the linguistics sites, but I'm sure there's documentation out there somewhere. I've always understood it as "making [some other solution] do [the job of the ideal solution]." Online I can find the Cambridge Int'l Dic'y for "make do and mend" ( http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/make+do+and+mend ). Also some attestation for the noun: http://www.answers.com/topic/make-do . I wonder if any of the idioms and proverbs related to "living large on a small budget" have a cool history? That might be a fun post for someone.
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Making do/making due...
Submitted by Guest on February 14, 2008 - 10:21.
This is one that needs to be added to the idiom dictionaries... I can't even find it on the linguistics sites, but I'm sure there's documentation out there somewhere. I've always understood it as "making [some other solution] do [the job of the ideal solution]." Online I can find the Cambridge Int'l Dic'y for "make do and mend" ( http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/make+do+and+mend ). Also some attestation for the noun: http://www.answers.com/topic/make-do . I wonder if any of the idioms and proverbs related to "living large on a small budget" have a cool history? That might be a fun post for someone.
Philip, thoughtful article as usual. Thanks!