The verb put alone means to place something in a position. Put the book on the table. Put the keys in your pocket. But when put combines with a small word (a particle), it makes phrasal verbs with very different meanings. Put on (put clothes on the body). Put off (delay or postpone). Put up with (tolerate, accept something annoying). Put away (return to its place). Put down (place down, or write down, or insult). Each of these is its own fixed expression with its own meaning. Many of them are idiomatic — the meaning cannot be guessed from put plus the particle. Put up with means tolerate, but neither put nor up nor with on its own gives that meaning. Students who know put alone cannot understand or use these phrasal verbs without explicit teaching. This lesson covers the most useful put phrasal verbs at B1 level and shows how to teach them as separate items.
Before you start — think honestly about your own teaching and experience.
Look at the examples. Answer each question before reading the explanation — this is how your students will learn too.
She put on her coat before going outside.
They put off the meeting until next week.
I cannot put up with this noise any longer.
Please put away your books before lunch.
He put down his bag and sat at the table.
The firefighters put out the fire quickly.
I tried to call but they could not put me through to the manager.
The team put forward a new plan to the head teacher.
What does put mean in each sentence? Can you guess the meanings from the parts?
Put alone means to place something. But in each sentence here, put combines with a particle to make a different meaning. Put on = place clothes on the body. Put off = delay or postpone. Put up with = tolerate, accept something annoying. Put away = return something to its place. Put down = place down (or write, or insult). Put out = extinguish (a fire). Put through = connect on the phone. Put forward = suggest or propose. Some of these (put on, put away, put down) are close to the literal meaning of put. Others (put off, put up with, put through, put forward) are idiomatic — the meaning cannot be worked out from the parts. Students need to learn each phrasal verb as its own fixed expression with its own meaning.
put up with (= tolerate, accept something difficult or annoying)
— I cannot put up with the noise from the next room.
put off (= delay or postpone, or also: discourage)
— We had to put off the wedding because of the rain.
— The bad smell put me off eating.
put forward (= suggest, propose)
— She put forward a good idea at the meeting.
put down (= insult, criticise, or write down)
— He puts down his sister all the time — it is unkind.
— Please put down your name on this list.
put up (= build, raise — for buildings, posters, signs)
— They are putting up a new school building.
These meanings are not predictable from the parts. Why are they particularly important for B1 students to learn?
These idiomatic phrasal verbs cannot be guessed. Put up with does not mean place up with — it means tolerate. Put off does not mean place off — it means delay. Put forward does not mean place forward — it means propose. Students who try to translate these word by word will produce wrong meanings. The only way to learn them is as fixed chunks with their own meaning. The teaching point: these are very common in everyday English and in reading. A student who avoids put phrasal verbs has to use longer formal alternatives — tolerate, postpone, propose, criticise. The phrasal verbs sound more natural in everyday English, especially in conversation and informal writing. Mastering the most useful 8 to 10 put phrasal verbs is high-value work at B1.
Most can be split when the object is a noun:
She put on her coat. ✓
She put her coat on. ✓
They put off the meeting. ✓
They put the meeting off. ✓
With pronouns (it, them, him, her), the pronoun must go in the middle:
She put it on. ✓
She put on it. ✗
They put it off. ✓
They put off it. ✗
Some cannot be split — they always stay together:
put up with — I cannot put up with this. ✓ / I cannot put this up with. ✗
put forward — She put forward a plan. ✓ / She put a plan forward. ✓ (this one CAN split)
Why are the splitting rules different for different put phrasal verbs?
Phrasal verbs follow different rules for object position depending on their structure. Two-word phrasal verbs that take a direct object (put on, put off, put away, put down, put out) usually allow splitting with nouns: put on the coat OR put the coat on. With pronouns, splitting is required: put it on (not put on it). Three-word phrasal verbs (put up with) cannot be split — the verb, particle, and preposition stay together. I cannot put up with this noise (right) but I cannot put this noise up with (wrong). Some three-word phrasal verbs are idiomatic combinations that have hardened into fixed units. For B1 students, the safest rule is: with two-word phrasal verbs, you can split with nouns and you must split with pronouns. With three-word phrasal verbs, keep them together. Drilling the most common combinations fixes the patterns.
| Phrasal verb | Meaning | Example | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| put on | Place clothes on the body | Put on your coat — it is cold outside. | Splits with nouns: put on coat / put coat on. With pronouns: put it on (not put on it). |
| put off | Delay or postpone (also: discourage) | They put off the meeting until next week. | Idiomatic. Splits with nouns and pronouns. Different from put on. |
| put up with | Tolerate, accept something annoying | I cannot put up with this noise any longer. | Three-word phrasal verb. Cannot be split — stays together. |
| put away | Return to its place; tidy | Please put away your books after the lesson. | Splits with nouns and pronouns: put it away. |
| put down | Place down; write down; insult | He put down his bag. / Put down your name. / Stop putting your sister down. | Three meanings. Splits the same way for all: put it down. |
| put out | Extinguish (fire, light) | The firefighters put out the fire quickly. | Splits with nouns and pronouns: put out the fire / put it out. |
| put through | Connect on the phone | Could you put me through to the manager? | Splits with object: put me through / put him through. |
| put forward | Suggest, propose (an idea, plan, person) | She put forward a good idea at the meeting. | Idiomatic. Splits: put forward a plan / put a plan forward. |
| put together | Assemble, build, organise | He put together a presentation in two hours. | Splits: put together a plan / put a plan together. |
| put back | Return to original place | Put back the dictionary when you have finished with it. | Splits with object: put back the book / put it back. |
| put up | Build, raise (buildings, signs); host (someone) | They are putting up a new school. / Can you put me up for the night? | Two meanings. The host meaning takes a person object: put me up, put my friend up. |
NOTE 1 — Each put phrasal verb is its own item: Do not teach them as put + a choice of particle. Each combination is fixed. Put on (clothes) and put off (delay) are completely different actions, not two meanings of one verb. Students must learn each as its own chunk with its own meaning.
NOTE 2 — Some are literal, some are idiomatic: Put on a coat, put away books, put down a bag are close to the literal meaning of put — placing something. Put off, put up with, put forward are idiomatic — the meanings cannot be guessed from the parts. Teach the literal ones first (they are more accessible) and the idiomatic ones once students are confident.
NOTE 3 — Three-word phrasal verbs cannot be split: Put up with stays together as a unit. I cannot put up with this noise (right). I cannot put this noise up with (wrong). Most other put phrasal verbs are two words and can be split with nouns. With pronouns, they must be split: put it on, put it off, put it away.
NOTE 4 — Multiple meanings need separate teaching: Put down has at least three meanings — place down, write down, insult someone. Put up has at least two — build something and host someone. Each meaning works in different contexts. Teach the meanings separately with clear examples to prevent confusion.
NOTE 5 — Why students avoid put phrasal verbs: Many B1 and B2 students recognise put phrasal verbs in reading but do not use them actively. They use formal alternatives — postpone instead of put off, tolerate instead of put up with, propose instead of put forward. The phrasal verbs sound more natural in everyday speech and informal writing. Active practice — using the verbs in real situations — moves them from passive to active use.
Phrasal verbs with put are some of the most useful in everyday English. They cover many common situations: dressing (put on), tidying (put away), arranging (put off, put back), connecting (put through), proposing (put forward), tolerating (put up with). A student who masters 8 to 10 put phrasal verbs gains significant fluency for daily conversation and writing. The challenge is that several are idiomatic and must be memorised as units. Teaching them with clear context — situations where they would naturally be used — helps fix them in memory. Pairing them with the get-family lesson (#20) gives students two productive phrasal verb sets to draw from.
Create a put phrasal verb map with put in the centre and the particles around it: on, off, up with, away, down, out, through, forward, together, back. For each, write a short meaning and an example sentence. Refer to the map regularly. The visual layout shows that put is a family of expressions, not a single verb.
Choose the correct put phrasal verb for each sentence. Think about the meaning the context requires.
Each sentence has a problem with a put phrasal verb — wrong choice, wrong word order, or missing words. Find the error and explain.
Use this sequence directly in class — guided discovery, no textbook needed. Tap each step to mark it done.
STEP 1 — Put alone vs put with particles (4 min): Write put on the board. Ask students what put alone means (place something). Then add particles: put on, put off, put up with, put away. Show that each combination has its own meaning, often very different from put alone. Establish that these are separate vocabulary items.
STEP 2 — The literal ones (5 min): Drill the more literal put phrasal verbs first: put on (clothes), put away (tidy), put down (place down), put back (return). These are close to the meaning of put. Have students produce sentences using each in everyday contexts.
STEP 3 — The idiomatic ones (8 min): Focus on the harder, idiomatic put phrasal verbs: put off (delay), put up with (tolerate), put forward (propose), put together (assemble), put through (connect on phone). Give clear examples of each. Drill the meanings until students recognise them automatically.
STEP 4 — Object position rules (6 min): Show the splitting rules. Two-word put phrasal verbs split with nouns or stay together: put on the coat or put the coat on. With pronouns, must split: put it on. Three-word put up with cannot split: put up with the noise (always together). Drill examples until the patterns are clear.
STEP 5 — Match the situation (7 min): Give students six situations and ask them to use the right put phrasal verb for each. Tidying after dinner (put away). Delaying a meeting (put off). Tolerating a noisy neighbour (put up with). Proposing an idea at work (put forward). Connecting a phone call (put through). Building a new school (put up). Discuss as a class.
Use directly in class — copy, adapt, or read aloud. No printing needed.
For each strategy, choose the option that best describes where you are now.
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