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Zuotengdazuo Posted 7 years ago
Grammar

What does “made out” mean here?

A thorough search was quickly made, and the body was discovered. Thus at the very moment that we thought that all was safe we were all four seized and brought to trial on a charge of murder –three of us because we had held the gate that night, and the fourth because he was known to have been in the company of the murdered man. Not a word about the jewels came out at the trial, for the rajah had been deposed and driven out of India: so no one had any particular interest in them. The murder, however, was clearly made out, and it was certain that we must all have been concerned in it. The three Sikhs got penal servitude for life, and I was condemned to death, though my sentence was afterwards commuted to the same as the others.

The Sign of the Four, novel

Hi. What does “made out” mean here?

Thank you.

  

Top answer

zuotengdazuo The murder, however, was clearly made out They easily deduced (from the discovery of the body) that a murder had been committed. The operative dictionary definition of "make out" is "to find or grasp the meaning of". (Ex: They tried to make out what had really happened.

  • zuotengdazuo The murder, however, was clearly made out They easily deduced (from the discovery of the body) that a murder had been committed.
  • The operative dictionary definition of "make out" is "to find or grasp the meaning of".
  • (Ex: They tried to make out what had really happened.
  • ) By the way, this particular usage can be classified as "nineteenth century literary".
  • The phrasal verb "make out" is still used, but nowadays it would very rarely occur as it does here.
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1 Answers
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zuotengdazuoThe murder, however, was clearly made out

They easily deduced (from the discovery of the body) that a murder had been committed.

The operative dictionary definition of "make out" is "to find or grasp the meaning of". (Ex: They tried to make out what had really happened.)


By the way, this particular usage can be classified

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