Phrasal Verbs with PUT
The verb put is one of the most versatile in English. Combined with different particles, it creates phrasal verbs with very different meanings.
Placing and Storing
| Phrasal Verb | German | Example |
|---|---|---|
| put away | wegräumen | Put away your toys. |
| put back | zurücklegen | Put the book back on the shelf. |
| put down | hinlegen/abstellen | Put down your phone for a minute. |
| put up | aufhängen/aufstellen | We put up some pictures in the office. |
Delaying and Stopping
| Phrasal Verb | German | Example |
|---|---|---|
| put off | verschieben/aufschieben | Don’t put off what you can do today. |
| put aside | beiseitelegen/zurückstellen | Let’s put our differences aside. |
| put on hold | auf Eis legen | The project was put on hold. |
Effort and Endurance
| Phrasal Verb | German | Example |
|---|---|---|
| put in | einbringen/investieren | She puts in a lot of effort. |
| put up with | ertragen/tolerieren | I can’t put up with this noise anymore. |
| put through | verbinden/durchstellen (Telefon) | I’ll put you through to the manager. |
| put forward | vorschlagen/einbringen | He put forward a new proposal. |
Extinguishing and Discouraging
| Phrasal Verb | German | Example |
|---|---|---|
| put out | löschen/ausmachen | The firefighters put out the fire. |
| put off | abschrecken/abhalten | The high price put me off. |
| put down | niedermachen/beleidigen | Stop putting her down in front of others. |
Some PUT phrasal verbs have multiple meanings. “Put off” can mean to postpone (“She put off the meeting”) OR to discourage (“The smell put me off eating”). Context always tells you which meaning is intended.