Make sense means to be clear, logical and easy to understand. In its second meaning, it says that a decision is reasonable: it makes sense to book early. In conversation, a short That makes sense means I see or that's logical.
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something + make(s) sense; it makes sense to + verb; make sense of + something
- Your explanation makes sense, but I'd like to see the figures too.
- It makes sense to buy train tickets early if you travel in August.
- The first chapter didn't make sense until I read the introduction again.
What changed
First versionIt has sense to start the project in January.
RevisionIt makes sense to start the project in January.
Has sense can look like a way to say that something is logical, but in this meaning English only uses make sense. Have sense is about a person and means to be sensible: She had the sense to call a doctor.
Make sense of is about a person trying to understand something complicated: I couldn't make sense of the contract. Here the sentence starts with the person who is trying to understand, not with the confusing thing. Compare: The contract didn't make sense to me.
Your turn
I've read this paragraph three times, but it still doesn't ___ sense to me.
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make — The sentence is about a text that is hard to understand, and only make sense fits that. Have sense is about a sensible person and doesn't apply to a paragraph.
Describe a decision at work or in your studies that seems reasonable to you. Start with it makes sense to and give a reason.
It makes sense to review new words on the bus, because I have forty free minutes there every morning.
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