Phrasal verb
Phrasal verbs with put
By EasySay. Published . Updated .
Put is a short verb, and the small word after it decides its meaning.
Put off means to delay, put on means to dress, and put up with means to tolerate something annoying. This page explains eight meanings of put, with a pattern and an example for each, and a five-question check.
Written for EasySay, in our own words.
In short
- Patternput sth off
- Patternput sth on
put: what it is, and what it is not
- IS
- put sth off: delay something until a later time.
- IS
- put sth on: dress yourself in a piece of clothing.
- IS
- put sth out: stop a fire from burning.
- IS
- put sth off: the object can go between put and off.
- IS NOT
- put up with sth: the object cannot go in the middle; it stays after the small words.
- IS NOT
- The plain verb: put with a small word takes a new meaning, such as delay something until a later time.
Meaning: Put is a short verb that changes with the small word after it. It can mean to delay, to dress, to stop a fire, to tolerate something annoying, to tidy and more.
How do people say it?
- Delay something until a later time:
We had to put the picnic off because it rained all morning.
- Dress yourself in a piece of clothing:
Put your jacket on; it is cold outside.
Check yourself
What should I know?
What does it mean, and how is it used?
| Meaning | Object in the middle? | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delay something until a later time | Yes | put sth off |
|
| Dress yourself in a piece of clothing | Yes | put sth on |
|
| Stop a fire from burning | Yes | put sth out |
|
| Give someone a place to stay for a short time | Yes | put sb up |
|
| Tolerate something annoying or unpleasant | No | put up with sth |
|
| Place something on a surface after holding it | Yes | put sth down |
|
| Tidy something into the place where it belongs | Yes | put sth away |
|
| Build something by joining its parts | Yes | put sth together |
|
Map of the small words
- putoff
- Delay something until a later timeput sth offObject can go in the middle
- puton
- Dress yourself in a piece of clothingput sth onObject can go in the middle
- putout
- Stop a fire from burningput sth outObject can go in the middle
- putup
- Give someone a place to stay for a short timeput sb upObject can go in the middle
- putup with
- Tolerate something annoying or unpleasantput up with sthObject goes after
- putdown
- Place something on a surface after holding itput sth downObject can go in the middle
- putaway
- Tidy something into the place where it belongsput sth awayObject can go in the middle
- puttogether
- Build something by joining its partsput sth togetherObject can go in the middle
Small words used with it
- off
- on
- out
- up
- down
- away
- together
What should I not mix it up with?
- take Take is a very common verb. With small words it can mean to look like a relative, to remove clothes, to start a hobby, to employ someone and more.
Put is a short word with a long list of uses. In the table, seven of the eight meanings are separable. The thing you are putting off, on, out, down, away or together goes between put and the small word.
A pronoun must go there. Say put it off, put them away and put it together. Only put up with keeps its three words together, so you say put up with it.
Put on and put off are easy to mix up, because the small words look like opposites and the meanings are not. Put on means to dress yourself in clothes, and put off means to delay something. If you want to say that clothes are removed, use take off, which belongs to another verb on this site, and not put off.
Put up has two meanings. The first is to give someone a bed: a friend puts you up for a few nights. The second is put up with, to tolerate something annoying.
You will often hear the second in sentences with cannot or will not, such as I will not put up with that. It needs an object, such as a noise, a delay or someone's behaviour.
The past form of put is also put. So a sentence such as We put the picnic off last week does not show the tense in the verb.
Look for words like yesterday, last week or tomorrow to tell you when something happened. Say each example aloud once, then cover the small word and check that you can fill the gap.
Other base verbs
Questions people ask
What does put off mean?
Put off means to delay something until a later time. You can put off a picnic, a meeting or a job. You can say put the picnic off or put off the picnic, and with a pronoun you say put it off.
Is put up with one phrase or three words?
It is one phrasal verb made of three words. Keep them together and put the thing you accept after them: I cannot put up with the noise. A pronoun also comes after with: I cannot put up with it.
Does put have a different past tense?
No. Put has the same form in the present and the past: I put it away yesterday. Look for words such as yesterday or last week to tell when it happened.
Does put up mean only to tolerate something annoying?
No. Put up with means to tolerate something annoying. Put someone up means to give them a place to stay. The small word with makes the difference.
Sources and dates
- EasySay's own writing for the phrasal verbs, EasySay. Licence: original writing for EasySay. Checked .
Cite this page
EasySay. "Phrasal verbs with put". https://easysay.org/phrasal-verbs/put. Last updated 23 October 2026.
https://easysay.org/phrasal-verbs/put