manage

manage — verb

1. to achieve something or complete a task even when it is not easy, often after pu

1.verbtransitive / intransitiveB1
Definition

to achieve something or complete a task even when it is not easy, often after putting in effort

Example

Paul managed to finish the marathon even though he twisted his ankle halfway through.

manage + to-infinitive for achievement against odds

A small fishing boat managed the open-sea crossing despite the strong winds.

Common collocations
  • manage to do something
  • manage on one's own
  • manage without help
Synonyms
  • succeed

    more direct; 'manage' adds the nuance of difficulty overcome

  • handle

    more informal and can mean dealing with something as routine

  • contrive

    very formal and often suggests cleverness or scheming, not everyday use

Antonyms
  • fail

    the direct opposite when an attempt does not succeed

Grammar Patterns

manage + to-infinitive

manage + noun phrase

manage (on one's own)

Usage Note

This sense often appears with a to-infinitive to stress that the outcome required effort. Without an object, manage means 'get by' or 'cope in a difficult situation.'

Common Mistakes

I managed finishing the report on time.
I managed to finish the report on time.
'manage' must be followed by a to-infinitive, not a gerund, when talking about achieving something.

2. to have just enough money to buy the things you need, especially when your incom

2.verbtransitive / intransitiveB1
Definition

to have just enough money to buy the things you need, especially when your income is very limited

Example

After losing his job, Tuan managed on a very small budget for several months.

manage + on + amount of money

Camila managed to support her family on just one part-time salary.

manage + to-infinitive with financial constraint

Common collocations
  • manage on a tight budget
  • manage on one salary
  • manage through hard times
Synonyms
  • get by

    phrasal verb, more informal, same meaning of surviving on limited money

  • scrape by

    suggests barely having enough, a struggle to survive

Antonyms
  • struggle

    fails to convey success; the opposite would be failing to have enough

Grammar Patterns

manage + on + small amount of money

manage + noun phrase (budget/money)

Usage Note

Frequently used with on followed by an amount of money or income source. The object is often implied rather than stated — 'We manage on very little.'

Common Mistakes

We managed to live with $50 a week.' (meaning financial survival).
We managed on $50 a week.
use 'on' to specify the amount, not 'with.'

3. to find room in your schedule for an event or activity, even when you are busy

3.verbtransitive / intransitiveB2
Definition

to find room in your schedule for an event or activity, even when you are busy

Example

Xiu could not manage a lunch meeting this week because of back-to-back deadlines.

manage + noun phrase (scheduled event)

Can you manage Friday afternoon for the training session?

Common collocations
  • manage a meeting
  • manage a date
  • manage an appointment
Synonyms
  • fit in

    phrasal verb, more conversational, often used with time as the object

  • make

    very informal, as in 'I can make Friday' — meaning attend

Grammar Patterns

manage + to-infinitive (time-related)

manage + noun phrase (meeting/appointment/event)

Usage Note

This sense is most common in questions and negative statements — 'Can you manage…?' and 'I could not manage…'. The object is usually a time, date, or scheduled activity.

Common Mistakes

I can manage to come to the party on Saturday.' (when you mean availability).
I can manage Saturday.
for availability, a simple noun phrase is more natural than a to-infinitive.

4. to be in charge of a company, team, project, or group of people, making decision

4.verbtransitiveB1
Definition

to be in charge of a company, team, project, or group of people, making decisions and directing their daily work

Example

Darius manages a team of fifteen software engineers at a tech company in Taipei.

manage + team / manage + department

Zola learned to manage her time more effectively after starting university.

Common collocations
  • manage a company
  • manage a team
  • manage a project
  • manage a budget
  • manage operations
Synonyms
  • run

    more informal, often used for businesses and organizations

  • direct

    more formal, focuses on giving guidance and setting direction

  • supervise

    emphasises watching over others' work rather than high-level control

  • oversee

    implies watching from a higher level without hands-on involvement

Antonyms
  • mismanage

    direct opposite — to manage badly or incorrectly

  • follow

    where a leader manages, a follower takes orders

Grammar Patterns

manage + business/organization/team

manage + project/budget/operation

be managed by + person/department

Usage Note

The most common sense of manage. The subject is usually a person with authority, and the object is typically an organization, team, resource, or process. Frequently used in the passive voice to describe how an entity is run.

Common Mistakes

She manages about her team very well.
She manages her team very well.
'manage' takes a direct object without a preposition.

5. to handle a challenging situation or intense feeling in a way that keeps you in

5.verbtransitiveB2
Definition

to handle a challenging situation or intense feeling in a way that keeps you in control

Example

The community managed the flood crisis by working together day and night.

manage + difficult situation (crisis/disaster)

Élise could barely manage her anger when she saw the damage to her car.

manage + emotion (anger/stress/anxiety)

Common collocations
  • manage a crisis
  • manage stress
  • manage conflict
  • manage pain
Synonyms
  • handle

    slightly more informal, very common in everyday speech

  • deal with

    phrasal verb; more general and neutral in tone

  • cope with

    emphasises the difficulty of the situation being handled

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

manage + emotion (anger/stress/anxiety)

manage + situation (crisis/conflict/problem)

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 4 (CONTROL/ORGANIZE): sense 4 is about authority and routine direction of work; sense 5 is about handling an adverse situation or internal feeling. The object is often something negative — a crisis, pain, stress, anger, or conflict.

Common Mistakes

He managed his company's anger about the delay.' (confusing senses 4 and 5).
He managed the team's anger about the delay.
use sense 5 for emotions and sense 4 for teams.

manage — noun

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/4

Manage (verb/4) is the broadest term for being in charge of people, projects, or organizations. Run is the most informal and common in everyday speech — you run a small business or a household, but you would not run a Fortune 500 company in formal writing. Direct is more formal and implies setting strategic direction rather than handling daily operations; a film director directs actors, while a managing director manages the whole company. Supervise focuses on watching over others' work to ensure quality and safety — a supervisor checks that tasks are done correctly but may not make high-level decisions. Oversee is similar to supervise but suggests a higher vantage point; someone who oversees a project monitors progress without doing hands-on work. Administer is the most formal, used for institutions and systems — a hospital administrator administers policies and budgets. If you lead a team day-to-day, use manage or run. If you watch from above, use oversee or supervise. Example: 'Darius manages the engineering team, while the CTO oversees all product development.'

run ↗direct ↗supervise ↗oversee ↗administer ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • manage to do something
  • manage on your own
  • manage without help

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinItalianFrenchEnglish

Manage entered English from Italian 'maneggiare' (to handle or train horses), which in turn came from Latin 'manus' meaning 'hand'. The original meaning was about physically controlling a horse, but by the 16th century it had broadened to handling any kind of business, situation, or group of people. The sense of 'getting by with limited resources' developed later, and the clipped noun form 'manage' for 'management' appeared in 20th-century business jargon.