/poot/ , v. , put, putting , adj. , n.
v.t.
1. to move or place (anything) so as to get it into or out of a specific location or position: to put a book on the shelf.
2. to bring into some relation, state, etc.: to put everything in order.
3. to place in the charge or power of a person, institution, etc.: to put a child in a special school.
4. to subject to the endurance or suffering of something: to put convicted spies to death.
5. to set to a duty, task, action, etc.: I put him to work setting the table.
6. to force or drive to some course or action: to put an army to flight.
7. to render or translate, as into another language: He put the novel into French.
8. to provide (words) with music as accompaniment; set: to put a poem to music.
9. to assign or attribute: You put a political interpretation on everything.
10. to set at a particular place, point, amount, etc., in a scale of estimation: I'd put the distance at five miles.
11. to bet or wager: to put two dollars on a horse.
12. to express or state: To put it mildly, I don't understand.
13. to apply, as to a use or purpose: to put one's knowledge to practical use.
14. to set, give, or make: to put an end to an ancient custom.
15. to propose or submit for answer, consideration, deliberation, etc.: to put a question before a committee.
16. to impose, as a burden, charge, or the like: to put a tax on luxury articles.
17. to invest (often fol. by in or into ): to put one's money in real estate; to put one's savings into securities.
18. to lay the blame of (usually fol. by on, to, etc.): He put my failure to lack of experience.
19. to throw or cast, esp. with a forward motion of the hand when raised close to the shoulder: to put the shot.
v.i.
20. to go, move, or proceed: to put to sea.
21. Informal. to begin to travel: to put for home.
22. to shoot out or grow, or send forth shoots or sprouts.
23. put about ,
a. Naut. to change direction, as on a course.
b. to start (a rumor); circulate.
c. to inconvenience; trouble.
d. to disturb; worry.
e. to turn in a different direction.
24. put across ,
a. to cause to be understood or received favorably: She put across her new idea. He puts himself across well.
b. to do successfully; accomplish: to put a project across.
c. to be successful in (a form of deception): It was obviously a lie, but he put it across.
25. put aside or by ,
a. to store up; save.
b. Also, set aside . to put out of the way; place to one side: Put aside your books and come for a walk.
26. put away ,
a. to put in the designated place for storage: Put away the groceries as soon as you get home.
b. to save, esp. for later use: to put away a few dollars each week.
c. to discard: Put away those childish notions.
d. to drink or eat, esp. in a large quantity; finish off: to put away a hearty supper after jogging.
e. to confine in a jail or a mental institution: He was put away for four years.
f. to put to death by humane means: The dog was so badly injured that the veterinarian had to put it away.
27. put down ,
a. to write down; register; record.
b. to enter in a list, as of subscribers or contributors: Put me down for a $10 donation.
c. to suppress; check; squelch: to put down a rebellion.
d. to attribute; ascribe: We put your mistakes down to nervousness.
e. to regard or categorize: He was put down as a chronic complainer.
f. Informal. to criticize, esp. in a contemptuous manner; disparage; belittle.
g. Informal. to humble, humiliate, or embarrass.
h. to pay as a deposit.
i. to store for future use: to put down a case of wine.
j. to dig or sink, as a well.
k. to put (an animal) to death; put away.
l. to land an aircraft or in an aircraft: We put down at Orly after six hours.
28. put forth ,
a. to bring out; bear; grow: The trees are putting forth new green shoots.
b. to propose; present: No one has put forth a workable solution.
c. to bring to public notice; publish: A new interpretation of the doctrine has been put forth.
d. to exert; exercise: We will have to put forth our best efforts to win.
e. to set out; depart: Dark clouds threatened as we put forth from the shore.
29. put forward ,
a. to propose; advance: I hesitated to put forward my plan.
b. to nominate, promote, or support, as for a position: We put him forward for treasurer.
30. put in ,
a. Also, put into . Naut. to enter a port or harbor, esp. for shelter, repairs, or provisions.
b. to interpose; intervene.
c. to spend (time) as indicated.
31. put in for, to apply for or request (something): I put in for a transfer to another department.
32. put it to , Slang.
a. to overburden with work, blame, etc.: They really put it to him in officer-training school.
b. to take advantage of; cheat: That used car dealer put it to me good.
33. put off ,
a. to postpone; defer.
b. to confuse or perturb; disconcert; repel: We were put off by the book's abusive tone.
c. to get rid of by delay or evasion.
d. to lay aside; take off.
e. to start out, as on a voyage.
f. to launch (a boat) from shore or from another vessel: They began to put off the lifeboats as the fire spread.
34. put on ,
a. to clothe oneself with (an article of clothing).
b. to assume insincerely or falsely; pretend.
c. to assume; adopt.
d. to inflict; impose.
e. to cause to be performed; produce; stage.
f. Informal. to tease (a person), esp. by pretending the truth of something that is untrue: You can't be serious - you're putting me on, aren't you?
g. to act in a pretentious or ostentatious manner; exaggerate: All that putting on didn't impress anyone.
35. put oneself out , to take pains; go to trouble or expense: She has certainly put herself out to see that everyone is comfortable.
36. put out ,
a. to extinguish, as a fire.
b. to confuse; embarrass.
c. to be vexed or annoyed: He was put out when I missed our appointment.
d. to subject to inconvenience.
e. Baseball, Softball, Cricket. to cause to be removed from an opportunity to reach base or score; retire.
f. to publish.
g. to go out to sea.
h. to manufacture; prepare; produce.
i. to exert; apply: They were putting out their best efforts.
j. Slang ( vulgar ). (of a woman) to engage in coitus.
37. put over ,
a. to succeed in; accomplish: It will take an exceptional administrator to put over this reorganization.
b. to postpone; defer: Discussion of this point will be put over until new evidence is introduced.
38. put something over on , to take advantage of; deceive: He suspected that his friend had put something over on him, but he had no proof.
39. put through ,
a. to complete successfully; execute: He was not able to put through his project.
b. to bring about; effect: The proposed revisions have not as yet been put through.
c. to make a telephone connection for: Put me through to Los Angeles.
d. to make (a telephone connection): Put a call through to Hong Kong.
e. to cause to undergo or endure: She's been put through a lot the past year.
40. put to it , to be confronted with a problem; have difficulty: We were put to it to find the missing notebook.
41. put up ,
a. to construct; erect.
b. to can (vegetables, fruits, etc.); preserve (jam, jelly, etc.).
c. to set or arrange (the hair).
d. to provide (money); contribute.
e. to accommodate; lodge.
f. to display; show.
g. to stake (money) to support a wager.
h. to propose as a candidate; nominate: Someone is going to put him up for president.
i. to offer, esp. for public sale.
j. Archaic. to sheathe one's sword; stop fighting.
42. put upon , to take unfair advantage of; impose upon: Some of the employees felt put upon when they were asked to work late.
43. put up to , to provoke; prompt; incite: Someone put him up to calling us.
44. put up with , to endure; tolerate; bear: I couldn't put up with the noise any longer.
adj.
45. stay put , Informal. to remain in the same position; refuse to move: The baby wouldn't stay put, and kept trying to climb out of the playpen.
n.
46. a throw or cast, esp. one made with a forward motion of the hand when raised close to the shoulder.
47. Also called put option . Finance. an option that gives the right to sell a fixed amount of a particular stock at a predetermined price within a given time, purchased by a person who expects the stock to decline. Cf. call (def. 65).
[ bef. 1000; ME put ( t ) en to push, thrust, put, OE * putian (as v. noun putung an impelling, inciting); akin to pytan, potian to push, goad, c. ON pota to thrust, poke ]
Syn. 1. PUT, PLACE, LAY, SET mean to bring or take an object (or cause it to go) to a certain location or position, there to leave it. PUT is the general word: to put the dishes on the table; to put one's hair up. PLACE is a more formal word, suggesting precision of movement or definiteness of location: He placed his hand on the Bible. LAY, meaning originally to cause to lie, and SET, meaning originally to cause to sit, are used particularly to stress the position in which an object is put: LAY usually suggests putting an object rather carefully into a horizontal position: to lay a pattern out on the floor. SET usually means to place upright: to set a child on a horse. 16. levy, inflict.