makegood (third-person singular simple presentmakes good,present participlemaking good,simple past and past participlemade good)
- To achieve substantialsuccess in life, often in business.
1925,Gilbert K. Chesterton,What I Saw in America[1], page94:America does vaguely feel a manmaking good as something analogous to a man being good or a man doing good.
1980 August 16, Karen Franklin, “Not Too Distant”, inGay Community News, volume 8, number 5, page 4:Some of the Cubans who come to this country hoping tomake good may be in for a shock. Would those 1,400 Cuban exiles already locked up have left Cuba — where jobs, education and health care are available to all, and where no laws against homosexuality exist — had they known they would end up in U.S. federal prisons, isolated from other prisoners and without benefit of trial?
2007, Michael Eric Dyson,Know What I Mean?: Reflections on Hip-Hop[2]:The moment DJay becomes a rapper, the moment he becomes an artist, is linked to his own understanding of what hip hop was about when Skinny Black, his idol, a local homeboy whomade good as a rapper, was “blowing up."
2012, Robert Wuthnow,Red State Religion: Faith and Politics in America's Heartland[3], page200:He [Eisenhower] was their own, the boy whomade good.
- (often with "on") Tocomplete successfully; tofulfil (a promise).
Hemade good his escape by jumping from a second-story window.
1996, Eugene Nelson White,Stock Market Crashes and Speculative Manias, page225:The Bank of the Commonwealth suspension resulted from overcertifying the checks of its former president, Edward Haight, to the amount of $225,000, of which Mr. Haight could onlymake good $60,000.
- (gambling) Tomatch the first player'sbet with one's own, rather than dropping out.
1885, William Brisbane Dick,The American Hoyle: Or, Gentleman's Hand-book of Games:After all the players who determine to go in havemade good the bet of the player who opened the Jack Pot, and the hands have been filled[…]
- Toremedy orcompensate for (a defect or deficiency).
The companymade good the damage by paying my repair costs.
1944 March and April, “The Western Desert Railway”, inRailway Magazine, page73:By a remarkable piece of railway reconstruction work on the part of the Allied Forces—mainly South African railway construction troops—mines laid along the track by the retreating enemy were removed by sappers, and the German damagemade good, within 7 days.
- To make (a surface) level or even.
2005, Roy Hughes,Painting and Decorating[4], page44:[…] the only action that will be required prior to decoration will be to wash down,make good and apply a fresh paint system.
achieve a substantial success in life
