- 1put something + adv./prep. to move something into a particular place or position Put the suitcases down there, please. Did you put sugar in my coffee? Put your hand up if you need more paper.
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- 2put something + adv./prep. to move something into a particular place or position using force He put his fist through a glass door.
- 3put somebody/something + adv./prep. to cause someone or something to go to a particular place Her family put her into a nursing home. It was the year that we put a man on the moon. attach
- 4put something + adv./prep. to attach or fix something to something else We had to put new locks on all the doors. write
- 5put something (+ adv./prep.) to write something or make a mark on something Put your name here. Friday at 11? I'll put it in my calendar. I couldn't read what she had put. print/publish
- 6put something + adv./prep. to have something printed in a newspaper or listed online He put an ad for a housemate in the paper. into state/condition
- 7put somebody/something + adv./prep. to bring someone or something into the state or condition mentioned I was put in charge of the office. The incident put her in a bad mood. Put yourself in my position. What would you have done? I tried to put the matter into perspective. Don't go putting yourself at risk. It was time to put their suggestion into practice. This new injury will put him out of action for several weeks.
- 8put something on/onto/to something to make someone or something feel something or be affected by something Her new job has put a great strain on her. They put pressure on her to resign. It's time you put a stop to this childish behavior. give value/rank
- 9put something on something to give or attach a particular level of importance, trust, value, etc. to something Our company puts the emphasis on quality. He put a limit on the amount we could spend.
- 10put somebody/something + adv./prep. to consider someone or something to belong to the class or level mentioned I'd put her in the top rank of modern novelists. express
- 11put something + adv./prep. to express or state something in a particular way She put it very tactfully. Put simply, we accept their offer or go bankrupt. I was, to put it mildly, annoyed (= I was extremely angry). He was too trusting—or, to put it another way, he had no head for business. The meat was—how shall I put it?—a little overdone. As T.S. Eliot puts it… She had never tried to put this feeling into words. Can you help me put this letter into good English, please? in sports
- 12put something to throw the shot (=a type of heavy ball) Idioms
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NAmE//pʊt//
Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they put he / she / it puts
past simple put
-ing form putting
used to say that you think someone is capable of doing something wrong, illegal, etc.
to suggest something to someone to see if they can argue against it I put it to you that you are the only person who had a motive for the crime.
to persuade someone to believe something that is not true Don't try to put one over on me!
used when comparing or contrasting someone or something with a group of other people or things to mean “combined” or “in total” Your department spent more last year than all the others put together.
used to tell someone to stop just talking about something and actually do it, show it, etc. Phrasal Verbsput aboveput acrossput asideput atput awayput backput beforeput behind youput downput down asput down forput down toput forthput forwardput input in forput intoput offput onput ontoput output overput throughput toput togetherput towardput underput upput up toput up with
Check pronunciation: put