20 Phrasal Verbs with PUT | PUT片語動詞完整指南

In any given workday in Taiwan, you might postpone a meeting (put it off), tolerate a difficult colleague (put up with them), and assemble a presentation (put it together) — all using the same four-letter verb. PUT is one of the most productive verbs in English for forming phrasal verbs, yet most Taiwan learners know only two or three of its combinations. This guide covers the 20 you actually need.

Mastering phrasal verbs with PUT is one of the fastest ways to sound natural in English conversation.

Why PUT Creates So Many Phrasal Verbs | 為何PUT能組成這麼多片語動詞

The verb “put” in its simplest form means to place something somewhere. But particle words — off, up, away, down, through, forward — each bring their own directional or conceptual meaning, and when they attach to “put,” the result is a new expression that native speakers reach for constantly. The Cambridge Dictionary lists over 30 phrasal verbs built from “put” — more than almost any other English verb produces.

This matters for Taiwan learners (台灣學習者) because PUT phrasal verbs appear constantly in business emails, casual conversation, and media. When you can only say “I will delay the meeting,” you sound overly formal. When you say “I’ll put the meeting off until Thursday,” you sound like someone who actually speaks English. That gap is what this guide closes.

One grammar note before we start: some PUT phrasal verbs are separable — you can put the object between PUT and the particle. Put off is separable: “put the meeting off” and “put off the meeting” are both correct. Others are inseparable: put up with always keeps its object at the end — “put up with the situation” works, but “put the situation up with” does not. We’ll flag this where it matters. For the full grammar breakdown, see our guide to phrasal verbs by meaning group.

20 Essential Phrasal Verbs with PUT | 20個必學PUT片語動詞

Movement & Placement | 移動與放置

Keeping a notebook of phrasal verb examples in context helps them stick.

1. Put down (放下 / 批評 / 記下)
Meaning: to place something on a surface; to criticize or belittle someone; to write something.
— Put your phone down and focus on the lesson.
— She always puts her ideas down in a notebook as soon as they come to her.

2. Put away (收好 / 存錢)
Meaning: to return something to its proper place; to save money for later use.
— Please put away your books before leaving the classroom.
— He puts away 10% of his salary every month for future travel.

3. Put back (放回去 / 推遲)
Meaning: to return something to where it was; to move an event to a later time.
— Put the scissors back where you found them.
— The meeting has been put back to next Friday.

4. Put aside (暫時擱置 / 存起來)
Meaning: to ignore or delay dealing with something; to save something for a specific purpose.
— Let’s put our differences aside and work together on this project.
— I’ve been putting aside money for a trip to Japan.

Wearing & Performing | 穿著與表演

Study notes with real example sentences make phrasal verbs with PUT easier to retain.

5. Put on (穿上 / 增胖 / 假裝)
Meaning: to wear a piece of clothing or accessory; to gain weight; to pretend or perform.
— It’s cold outside — put on your jacket before you leave.
— She’s just putting on a brave face. She’s actually very stressed.

6. Put off (推遲 / 使人反感 / 令人掃興)
Meaning: to postpone; to discourage or repel someone; to cause someone to lose interest.
— Don’t put off what you can do today.
— The smell in the restaurant really put me off my food.

Tolerating & Supporting | 忍受與支持

7. Put up with (忍受 / 容忍)
Meaning: to tolerate something unpleasant without complaining. [Inseparable — always keep the object at the end]
— I don’t know how she puts up with so much noise every day.
— The workers refused to put up with the unsafe conditions any longer.

8. Put up (提供住宿 / 張貼 / 架設)
Meaning: to provide accommodation for someone; to display something on a wall; to erect a structure.
— Can you put me up for the night? My flight is cancelled.
— They put up posters around the school for the English speaking event.

9. Put through (轉接電話 / 使歷經困難)
Meaning: to connect a phone call to another person; to make someone experience something difficult.
— Let me put you through to the customer service department.
— The training program put the new recruits through some grueling challenges.

Proposing & Communicating | 提出與溝通

Knowing how to “put forward” an idea in English is essential for workplace communication.

10. Put forward (提出建議 / 提名)
Meaning: to suggest an idea for others to consider; to nominate someone for a position.
— She put forward a proposal to reduce the project budget by 15%.
— His name was put forward for the team leader position by three colleagues.

11. Put across (清楚表達 / 溝通想法)
Meaning: to communicate an idea or message so others understand it clearly. [Separable]
— The speaker did a great job of putting her message across to the audience.
— He struggled to put his technical ideas across in plain English.

12. Put out (熄滅 / 出版 / 麻煩某人)
Meaning: to extinguish a fire or light; to publish or release something; to cause inconvenience to someone.
— Firefighters put out the blaze within an hour of arriving on scene.
— The band put out their third album last month and it’s already charting.

Creating & Completing | 建立與完成

13. Put together (組合 / 製作 / 集合)
Meaning: to assemble parts into a whole; to prepare or create something from components.
— It took us three hours to put together the flat-pack bookshelf.
— She put together an impressive portfolio for the job interview in just two days.

14. Put in (安裝 / 投入時間 / 提交)
Meaning: to install equipment or infrastructure; to spend time or effort on something; to submit a formal request.
— They put in new air conditioning units before the summer heat arrived.
— You need to put in real effort every day if you want to improve your English fluency.

15. Put in for (正式申請)
Meaning: to formally apply for something, such as a job, annual leave, or a transfer. [Inseparable]
— She put in for a promotion after three years of strong performance at the company.
— I’ve put in for two weeks of annual leave in August.

Advanced Expressions | 進階表達

Advanced PUT phrasal verbs like “put over” and “put across” are common in professional contexts.

16. Put over (成功傳達 / 說服)
Meaning: to convince people to accept something; to present an idea successfully. Similar to put across, but with a stronger connotation of persuasion in business contexts.
— The sales team put over the new product features very effectively in the demo.
— Can you put over the benefits of the new workflow to the whole department?

17. Put off by (感到反感 / 被打消興趣)
Meaning: to feel repelled or discouraged by something. Commonly used in passive form.
— Many students are put off by grammar exercises that feel disconnected from real life.
— I was put off by his aggressive tone in the meeting, so I said nothing.

18. Put to (向某人提問 / 用於)
Meaning: to ask someone a question directly; to use something for a particular purpose.
— Let me put this question to the whole group: is the current system actually working?
— Old office equipment can often be put to good use in smaller branch offices.

19. Put down to (歸因於)
Meaning: to say that something is caused by or because of a particular thing.
— The team put their success down to months of consistent preparation and feedback.
— Doctors put his fatigue down to a lack of quality sleep rather than any illness.

20. Put on weight (體重增加)
Meaning: to gain body weight. A fixed, natural-sounding expression — gain weight is the more formal equivalent.
— I always put on weight during the Lunar New Year holiday season.
— He put on five kilograms after switching from a physical job to a desk job.

How to Remember PUT Phrasal Verbs | 如何記憶PUT片語動詞

Grouping PUT phrasal verbs by theme — not by alphabet — makes them stick faster.

The reason most learners struggle with PUT phrasal verbs is that they try to memorize a long list all at once. That approach works until you need to use one in real conversation, and then the list disappears. The better method is to cluster by context rather than by alphabet.

Think of it this way: put off, put back, et put aside all share the idea of delay or removal from the immediate situation. Put forward, put across, et put over are all about communicating an idea to others. When you file them into semantic clusters, your brain builds a map rather than a random vocabulary pile.

The second technique that consistently works: link each phrasal verb to a specific scene from your own life in Taiwan. Put up with the morning commute on the MRT. Put aside money for a weekend trip to Hualien. Put in extra hours at the office before the quarterly review. Personal memory anchors beat flashcards every time. Compare how the same clustering approach works for other verbs in our complete GET phrasal verbs guide and our MAKE phrasal verbs guide.

Common Mistakes Taiwanese Learners Make | 台灣學習者的常見錯誤

A few error patterns show up repeatedly in Taiwan classrooms and business English contexts.

Confusing put off with put out: Both can suggest stopping something, but the situations are different. You put off a meeting (postpone it) and you put out a fire (extinguish it). They are not interchangeable — using the wrong one will confuse native speakers.

Adding “it” to inseparable phrasal verbs: Some learners say “put up with it the problem” — which sounds wrong to native ears. With inseparable verbs like put up with, the object goes at the end: “put up with the problem.” There is no middle position for the object. The British Council phrasal verb grammar reference covers this rule in detail if you want the full explanation.

Not knowing “put on” has three meanings: Taiwan learners typically know “put on” as “to wear clothing.” But it also means to gain weight (put on weight) and to pretend or perform (put on a show, put it on = exaggerate). Missing these meanings causes real comprehension gaps when listening to natural English speech.

Using “put” where a more specific verb fits better: In formal writing, “put” can sound too casual. “Please put your documents here” is fine for conversation, but a formal letter calls for “please submit your documents” or “please leave your documents at reception.” Context determines which register works.

Practice Exercises | 練習題

Testing yourself with fill-in-the-blank exercises is the fastest way to lock in new phrasal verbs.

Fill in the blank with the correct PUT phrasal verb from this list: put off, put up with, put together, put in for, put forward, put across, put out, put away.

1. The fire department managed to ______ the fire before it spread to the next building.
2. I can’t ______ another week of this noise from the construction next door.
3. She ______ a brilliant proposal for reducing the department’s operating costs by 20%.
4. Don’t ______ your English practice — even 20 minutes a day compounds into real progress.
5. He ______ a request for three days off before the national holiday.
6. The marketing team ______ the entire campaign in just five days.
7. Could you ______ your dishes after dinner? The kitchen is getting messy.
8. The key to good communication is being able to ______ your ideas simply and clearly.

Answers (答案): 1. put out  |  2. put up with  |  3. put forward  |  4. put off  |  5. put in for  |  6. put together  |  7. put away  |  8. put across

The 20 phrasal verbs in this guide appear regularly in business email, casual conversation, and English media. Return to the practice section whenever you want a quick refresher — and when you’re ready for more, our phrasal verbs by meaning group guide covers over 60 additional verbs organized by theme.

Sources

1. Cambridge Dictionary — Phrasal Verbs with PUT — Authoritative grammar reference listing common PUT phrasal verb forms, meanings, and usage patterns.
2. British Council — Phrasal Verbs Grammar Reference — Complete overview of phrasal verb grammar including separable vs inseparable forms with exercises.
3. Merriam-Webster — Definition of PUT — Comprehensive dictionary entry covering all primary uses of the verb “put” in American English.