manufacture

manufacture — verb

1. 用機器在工廠大量生產產品，以供銷售

1.verbtransitiveB2
Definition

用機器在工廠大量生產產品，以供銷售

Example

The factory in Minho's hometown manufactures ceramic tiles for export.

manufacture + noun + for + purpose

Kasia's firm manufactures electronic sensors used in hospital equipment.

Common collocations
  • manufacture goods
  • manufacture products
  • manufacture parts
  • manufacture equipment
  • manufacture components
  • manufacture machinery
  • manufacture clothing
  • manufacture furniture
  • manufacture from raw materials
  • manufacture in a factory
  • manufacture on a large scale
Synonyms
  • produce

    broader term; can apply to both physical goods and creative/intellectual work

  • make

    more informal and general; used for any act of creation, not only industrial

  • fabricate

    more formal; also carries the secondary meaning of 'invent falsely'

  • assemble

    specifically means putting together pre-made parts, not creating from raw materials

Antonyms
  • dismantle

    to take apart something that was manufactured

  • destroy

    to ruin or break a manufactured item completely

Grammar Patterns

manufacture + noun (product)

be manufactured + prepositional phrase (in/at/from)

Usage Note

Frequently used in the passive voice when the focus is on the product rather than the producer. The preposition 'in' indicates location ('manufactured in China'), while 'from' indicates raw material ('manufactured from recycled plastic').

Common Mistakes

The company manufacture cars.
The company manufactures cars.
The subject 'company' is singular, so the verb needs a third-person -s ending.
They manufactured a new idea for the project.
They came up with a new idea for the project.
'Manufacture' for physical goods only; use 'come up with' or 'develop' for ideas.

2. 為了欺騙他人而編造不實的故事、藉口或資訊

2.verbtransitiveB2
Definition

為了欺騙他人而編造不實的故事、藉口或資訊

Example

Yuna manufactured an excuse about a power cut to skip the meeting.

manufacture + excuse + to + infinitive (purpose)

The journalist manufactured quotes and attributed them to city officials.

Common collocations
  • manufacture a story
  • manufacture an excuse
  • manufacture evidence
  • manufacture a lie
  • manufacture a claim
  • manufacture an alibi
  • manufacture false information
Synonyms
  • fabricate

    nearly identical in meaning; also strongly negative and used for lies

  • invent

    less negative; can mean genuinely create something new

  • make up

    informal phrasal verb; common in everyday speech

  • concoct

    slightly more literary; suggests careful planning of the deception

Antonyms
  • report

    to truthfully relay what happened, without invention

  • reveal

    to make the truth known, opposite of concealing it with lies

Grammar Patterns

manufacture + noun (story/excuse/evidence)

manufacture + noun + to + infinitive

Usage Note

Strongly negative connotation — implies deliberate deception. Common objects include 'story', 'excuse', 'evidence', 'claim', 'report', and 'accusation'. Unlike sense 1, this sense is never used for physical objects.

Common Mistakes

She manufactured a good plan for the weekend.
She came up with a good plan for the weekend.
'Manufacture an excuse/story' is only for falsehoods; use 'come up with' or 'think of' for genuine plans.
He manufactured the truth.
He manufactured a lie.
'Manufacture' with the figurative sense always involves something false; the truth cannot be 'manufactured' in this sense.

3. 生物體內經由自然過程產生某種物質

3.verbtransitiveC1
Definition

生物體內經由自然過程產生某種物質

Example

Human skin manufactures vitamin D when exposed to direct sunlight.

body part + manufacture + substance + when/under [condition]

Silkworms manufacture a fine thread used to make luxurious silk fabric.

Common collocations
  • manufacture hormones
  • manufacture enzymes
  • manufacture proteins
  • manufacture vitamins
  • manufacture antibodies
  • manufacture chemicals
  • manufactured naturally by the body
Synonyms
  • produce

    most common alternative; works in both academic and general contexts

  • generate

    suggests a process that creates energy or chemical compounds

  • synthesize

    technical term commonly used in biochemistry

  • secrete

    specifically means releasing a substance after it is produced inside an organism

Antonyms
  • absorb

    to take in a substance rather than create it

  • break down

    to decompose or digest a substance

Grammar Patterns

manufacture + noun (substance/compound)

be manufactured by + organism/body part

Usage Note

Common in biology and chemistry contexts. The subject is typically an organism, organ, or cell. Unlike sense 1, there is no implication of machinery or human planning. This sense is less common in everyday conversation and more frequent in academic writing.

Common Mistakes

The factory manufactures vitamin D.
The human body manufactures vitamin D.
Sense 3 is about natural biological production, not industrial. Use sense 1 for factories.

manufacture — noun

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

Make is the most general word — you can make anything from a sandwich to a skyscraper. Produce is also broad but often suggests an intentional, systematic process ('the company produces award-winning wines'). Manufacture specifically refers to large-scale industrial production using machines and often implies a factory setting. Fabricate overlaps with manufacture in technical contexts ('fabricate metal parts') but carries a strong secondary meaning of inventing lies. Assemble is narrower: it means putting together pre-made parts rather than creating the parts themselves. For example, a car manufacturer manufactures engines from raw materials, then assembles them into the finished vehicle on a production line.

make ↗produce ↗manufacture ↗fabricate ↗assemble ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • manufacturer
  • manufacturing sector
  • manufacturing plant
  • manufacturing process
  • manufacturing industry
  • manufacturing base

Adverbs

  • commercially manufactured
  • specially manufactured
  • mass-manufactured
  • locally manufactured
  • safely manufactured

Phrases

  • manufacture and trade
  • manufacture and distribution
  • manufacture and assembly
  • manufacture and supply

Prepositions

  • manufacture of
  • manufacture by
  • manufacture from
  • manufacture in
  • manufacture for

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

From Latin 'manu factus' meaning 'made by hand' — 'manu' (by hand) + 'factus' (made). Entered English via French 'manufacture' in the 16th century, originally referring to any product of human craftsmanship. The meaning shifted toward factory production during the Industrial Revolution, and the figurative sense of 'inventing falsehoods' appeared in the 18th century.