Antonyms for make fast


Grammar : Verb
Spell : meyk
Phonetic Transcription : meɪk


Definition of make fast

Origin :
  • Old English macian "to make, form, construct, do; prepare, arrange, cause; behave, fare, transform," from West Germanic *makon "to fashion, fit" (cf. Old Saxon makon, Old Frisian makia "to build, make," Middle Dutch and Dutch maken, Old High German mahhon "to construct, make," German machen "to make"), from PIE *mag- "to knead, mix; to fashion, fit" (see macerate). If so, sense evolution perhaps is via prehistoric houses built of mud. Gradually replaced the main Old English word, gewyrcan (see work (v.)).
  • Meaning "to arrive at" (a place), first attested 1620s, originally was nautical. Formerly used in many places where specific verbs now are used, e.g. to make Latin (c.1500) "to write Latin compositions." This broader usage survives in some phrases, e.g. to make water "to urinate," to make a book "arrange a series of bets" (1828), make hay "to turn over mown grass to expose it to sun." Make the grade is 1912, perhaps from the notion of railway engines going up an incline.
  • Read the valuable suggestions in Dr. C.V. Mosby's book -- be prepared to surmount obstacles before you encounter them -- equipped with the power to "make the grade" in life's climb. [advertisement for "Making the Grade," December 1916]
  • But the phrase also was in use in a schoolwork context at the time. Make do "manage with what is available" is attested from 1867. Make time "go fast" is 1849; make tracks in this sense is from 1834. To make a federal case out of (something) popularized in 1959 movie "Anatomy of a Murder;" to make an offer (one) can't refuse is from Mario Puzo's 1969 novel "The Godfather." To make (one's) day is from 1909; menacing make my day is from 1971, popularized by Clint Eastwood in film "Sudden Impact" (1983). Related: Made; making.
  • As in latch : verb fasten with lock
  • As in moor : verb anchor, fasten securely
  • As in attach : verb join, fasten
  • As in peg : verb attach
  • As in secure : verb attach, tie up
  • As in set : verb position, place
  • As in spike : verb pierce
  • As in tie : verb connect, interlace
  • As in clamp : verb fasten
  • As in clinch : verb hold securely; grab
  • As in subjoin : verb attach
  • As in hitch : verb join, fasten
Example sentences :
  • One of the men crept across, and assisted Gonzaga to make fast his end.
  • Extract from : « Love-at-Arms » by Raphael Sabatini
  • The instant he lets up, catch that flank girth and make fast.
  • Extract from : « The Pony Rider Boys in Texas » by Frank Gee Patchin
  • Buck and Hop were to stand by the hawsers by which we were to make fast to the Islander.
  • Extract from : « Up the River » by Oliver Optic
  • Nejdanov thought of the rope that is flung to the quay to make fast a ship.
  • Extract from : « Virgin Soil » by Ivan S. Turgenev
  • Well, toss us your painter, and tell the other boat to make fast to your stern.
  • Extract from : « Jim Spurling, Fisherman » by Albert Walter Tolman
  • Shake up, you gibbering fools; luff her a bit and make fast.
  • Extract from : « The Iron Pirate » by Max Pemberton
  • Make fast the painter—there; get your arms now, boys, and follow me.
  • Extract from : « The Lonely Island » by R.M. Ballantyne
  • For us to draw in here and make fast, then you can stand in the bight like a stirrup.
  • Extract from : « Sail Ho! » by George Manville Fenn
  • "Catch it and make fast to something," he cried, as the rope fell.
  • Extract from : « A Voyage with Captain Dynamite » by Charles Edward Rich
  • Haul out the reef-tackles, make fast, and haul taut the buntlines.
  • Extract from : « The Seaman's Friend » by Richard Henry Dana

Synonyms for make fast

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019