Make out means to see, hear or read something with difficulty: a sign in the distance, words in a noisy place, someone's handwriting. It is most often used in negative sentences, when you can't see or hear clearly: I can't make out the words. The second meaning, informal and more often American, is to kiss: make out with someone.
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can't/couldn't make out + something; make it/them out; make out + what/who/where…; make out with + someone (informal)
- It was so foggy that we could hardly make out the road signs.
- The recording is so quiet that I can't make out a single word.
- A couple were making out in the back row of the cinema.
What changed
First versionHis handwriting is so messy that I can't make out it.
RevisionHis handwriting is so messy that I can't make it out.
If the object is a pronoun (it, him, them), it goes between make and out: I can't make it out. A noun can go either after out or before it: make out the words or make the words out. So it moves to the middle.
Figure out is similar, but it's about understanding: how something works, how to solve a problem. I can't figure out how this app works. Make out is about something that's hard to see or hear: I can't make out the number on that bus.
Your turn
The announcement at the station was so quiet that I couldn't ___ which platform our train was leaving from.
Show the answer
make out — The announcement was quiet and you didn't catch the platform number, so make out. Make up means to invent, and nobody invents a platform number.
Describe a situation when you couldn't make something out: a sign, an announcement, handwriting, song lyrics. Say what it was and why you couldn't.
At the airport I couldn't make out the gate number on the screen because I'd left my glasses at home.
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