Meaning of make tick | Babel Free

Definitions

1. To cause someone or something to operate the way it does.
   colloquial
2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see make, tick.

Examples

“I honestly don't know the specifics that make him tick, and I wish I did.”

“Most of us find ourselves caught in the middle, ducking for cover and wondering just who these people are and what could possibly make them tick.”

“I wanted to roam the world, exploring what made it tick, helping to make it tick better, and never get married.”

“So what is it that makes SBB (Swiss national railways) tick? In my humble opinion, two things. Firstly, a comprehensive and set-in-stone integrated timetable (incorporating trains, ferries, cable cars and buses, including the world-famous yellow 'post-autos'), compiled four years in advance and which gets tested twice before it becomes operational.”

CEFR level