make up for
埋め合わせる
解説 Definition
失ったものや与えた損害の埋め合わせをすること。補償すること。
To make up for something means to do something good to balance a loss, mistake, or disappointment. It is often used when someone wants to repair a bad situation or replace what was missing. This phrase usually shows an effort to compensate in some way.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
核は make と up。make up だけだと「作る・でっち上げる・仲直りする」など意味が広いが、for が続くと「何かの不足や損失に対して埋める」という向きがはっきり出ます。つまり make up for は「足りなくなった分を作って埋める」と捉えると覚えやすいです。make up for lost time, make up for the mistake のように、遅れ・損失・失敗の穴埋めでよく使います。単なる compensate より日常会話で見かけやすい表現です。
Focus on make up first: it can mean "create" or "fill." When for follows, it points to something missing or lost, so make up for means "fill the gap for something." It often appears with loss, delay, or mistakes, as in "make up for lost time" or "make up for a mistake."
例文
He bought her flowers to make up for forgetting her birthday.
彼は誕生日を忘れた埋め合わせに花を買った。
Nothing can make up for the loss of a loved one.
愛する人を失った悲しみは何をしても埋め合わせられない。
She worked overtime to make up for the days she had missed.
彼女は休んだ日の埋め合わせに残業した。
make up for の類義語・関連語
make up for の語源・成り立ち Etymology
make up for は make「作る」+ up「上へ・補って」+ for「…の代わりに」から成る。make は古英語 macian に由来し、不足や損失の分を上へ作り足して埋める感覚が、そのまま「埋め合わせる」につながる。関連語は makeup, remake。
"Make up for" is built from "make," "up," and "for." "Make" comes from Old English "macian," meaning to make or build, and "up" gives a sense of adding or completing something. Together, the phrase came to mean adding enough to cover a loss or lack, so it developed the sense of compensating for something.
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