make

Compared meaning: create something (verb).

比较义项：制造，生产（动词）。

• make 本词

  A general, everyday word for creating something, often by hand, in small amounts or informal contexts like cooking, crafts, or one-off items.

  一个通用的日常词，指制造某物，常常是手工的、少量的，或用于做饭、手工艺等非正式场合。

  Can you make dinner while I finish this call?

  你能在我打完这通电话之前做一下晚饭吗？

• produce

  More formal; suggests large-scale, industrial or mechanized creation, often by factories or machines, and is used with quantities or rates.

  更正式；通常指工厂或机器进行的大规模、工业化生产，常与数量或产量搭配使用。

  This factory produces thousands of cars every month.

  这家工厂每个月生产数千辆汽车。

Make and produce both mean creating something. Make is a general, everyday word, often for things made by hand or in small amounts. Produce is more formal, suggesting large-scale or industrial creation, often by factories or machines.

在“制造、生产某物”这个意思上，make 和 produce 很接近，但 make 是日常泛用词，产量或场合不限；produce 更正式，常指工厂、机器或大规模、成批的生产。这里不比较 produce 的“种植（农作物）”等其他义项。

Compared meaning: make something happen (verb).

比较义项：使某事发生（动词）。

• make 本词

  Informal causative verb, typically followed by an object plus a bare infinitive, especially for someone's reaction (make her cry); rarely used for large-scale disasters or formal statistics.

  非正式的致使动词，通常后接“宾语+动词原形”，尤其用于描述某人的反应（make her cry）；很少用于大型灾难或正式统计场合。

  That silly joke made everyone at the table laugh out loud.

  那个滑稽的笑话让桌上的每个人都放声大笑。

• cause

  More formal verb, typically takes a noun object naming a problem or event (cause damage, cause a delay), or object plus a to-infinitive; common in reports and news about negative outcomes.

  较正式的动词，通常接表示问题或事件的名词宾语（cause damage、cause a delay），或“宾语+to不定式”；常见于报道及描述负面结果的新闻中。

  Heavy traffic caused a two-hour delay on the highway this morning.

  今天早上严重的交通堵塞导致高速公路上出现了两小时的延误。

Make and cause both mean making something happen. Make is informal, followed by an object plus a plain verb, as in make her cry. Cause is more formal, followed by a noun naming a problem, or by an object plus a to-infinitive; often in reports.

make和cause在“使某事发生”这个意义上很接近，但make更口语化，常接“宾语+动词原形”，尤其用于描述某人的情绪或反应（make her cry）；cause更正式，多接名词宾语（表示问题或事件）或“宾语+to不定式”，常用于负面事件或正式报道中。这里不比较make的其他常见意义，例如“制作、准备”（make dinner）。