As a general rule, if you 'make' something, you create something that wasn't there before. Here are some examples and common set phrases. If you don't know any of them, just check them in the dictionary - they're all common and useful phrases. Make a pizza Make a noise Make an enquiry Make a fuss Make a mess Make a complaint Make a big deal of something If you 'do' something, it's often a job or a task and you simply need to perform it. For example: Do a job Do the gardening Do an exam Do an interview Do a test Do some cleaning There are some exceptions, but this is a general rule that should help you. The important thing to remember that you should never translate a phrase 'word for word' directly from Spanish. You should always find out how to say the phrase in English and learn the complete English phrase.

The two verbs are interchangeable in some circumstances, so they kind of mean the same thing. It is actually quite difficult to describe the differences in meanings to you, so here is an example. 'You have to make a cake for dinner' 'Yes, I know. I'll do it later' If you look up the 2 verbs in a dictionary, there will be a long explanation about the differences, but in general you can use either.