'take' or 'make' before certain nouns

Question

I often have to think before I choose take or make in front of nouns like a step, a decision, a picture, and I am pretty sure this happens because of my mother tongue. Are all these simply idiomatic expressions which we eventually get used to through practice, or is there some kind of guiding rule?

Answer 1

They are very different words and there are relatively few cases where, due to idiomatic use, they can both be used. "Step" and "decision" are examples of this.

"Make" means to produce or create something. One can 'make a step' in that they created that action.

"Take" (in this context) means to do or begin to do something (see also 'undertake') so a person can also be said to 'take a step' in that they carried out that action. It is idiomatic to this particular context, but there are other examples where it is idiomatic such as 'taking decisions'.

Your example of a 'picture' is different - it is idiomatic to say "take a picture" if you mean a photograph, but not to say you "made" a photograph. However, when it comes to other forms of art that you actually create or construct, you could use "made".

I can't say there is any firm guiding rule, but if you keep in mind the root meaning of 'made' is to create you will see where that might be inappropriate. Note also that there are other definitions of 'take'. It can mean to seize something, for example, you can "take a holiday" or "take a break".