Faire vs rendre in French: two ways to say make

Use faire for “make/do” when someone performs an action, creates something or causes an action: faire un gâteau, faire les devoirs, faire rire quelqu'un. Use rendre when “make” means “make someone or something become a state”, especially before an adjective: rendre quelqu'un heureux, rendre la situation difficile. So “make dinner” is faire le dîner, but “make me happy” is me rendre heureux/heureuse.

English “make” means… Use Example
create/do something faire Elle fait un gâteau.She is making a cake.
do an activity/task faire Je fais mes devoirs.I do my homework.
cause someone to act faire + infinitive Ce film me fait rire.This film makes me laugh.
make someone/something become + adjective rendre + adjective Cette nouvelle me rend heureux.This news makes me happy.

Faire: make, do, perform

Faire is the broad everyday verb for making and doing. Use it with tasks, activities, food, work, sports and many fixed expressions.

Je fais une réservation pour ce soir.
I’m making a reservation for tonight.

Nous faisons les courses le samedi.
We do the shopping on Saturday.

When “make someone do something” is followed by another verb, French often uses faire + infinitive.

Le professeur fait répéter la phrase.
The teacher makes the class repeat the sentence.

Rendre: make someone or something become

Use rendre before an adjective when the result is a state or quality.

Ce message me rend nerveux.
This message makes me nervous.

La pluie rend la route dangereuse.
The rain makes the road dangerous.

Rendre also has a separate literal meaning: “to return” or “give back”. Je rends le livre means “I’m returning the book”.

Faire plus infinitive vs rendre plus adjective

The structure after the verb is the best clue.

Pattern Meaning Example
faire + noun do/make a thing or task faire une listemake a list
faire + infinitive cause an action faire attendre quelqu’unmake someone wait
rendre + noun + adjective cause a state rendre quelqu’un tristemake someone sad
rendre + noun return/give back rendre les clésreturn the keys

Common mistakes

Using faire before an adjective state

For “make someone happy/sad/nervous”, use rendre.

Cette chanson me fait triste. -> Cette chanson me rend triste.
This song makes me sad.

Using rendre for making an object

Creation and tasks use faire.

Elle rend un gâteau. -> Elle fait un gâteau.
She is making a cake.

Forgetting faire plus infinitive

When you cause an action, use faire before the infinitive.

Il me rend rire. -> Il me fait rire.
He makes me laugh.

Faire is one of the broadest French verbs, so comparing it with rendre helps separate actions from resulting states. Fluera practices the verb with the words around it: noun, infinitive or adjective, so you can see which structure “make” needs. Try it when you practice French.

Practice

Question 1 of 10

She is making a cake.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between faire and rendre?
Faire means "make/do" for actions, tasks and creation: faire un gâteau, faire les devoirs. Rendre means "make someone or something become a state" before an adjective: cette nouvelle me rend heureux.
How do you say make me happy in French?
Say me rendre heureux if the speaker is masculine or me rendre heureuse if the speaker is feminine. The full sentence could be ça me rend heureux/heureuse.
How do you say make a cake in French?
Say faire un gâteau. Creating or preparing something uses faire, not rendre.
Is rendre only used for make?
No. Rendre also means "to return" or "give back": rendre les clés ("return the keys"). In the "make" meaning, it is usually rendre + noun/pronoun + adjective.