put down to
To ascribe; to assume to be the cause of a situation.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“I put his bad mood down to a lack of sleep.”
“The manager put the team's poor performance down to the recent changes in company policy.”
“The historian put the sudden collapse of the ancient civilization down to a combination of severe drought and internal political instability.”
- 01
lipstick on a pig
To make superficial or cosmetic changes to something in a doomed attempt to disguise its fundamental flaws.
- 02
not to put too fine a point on it
Used to apologize for a possibly impolite statement one is making; to put it bluntly; to express it in plain terms.
- 03
put a band-aid on a bullet wound
To inadequately treat a serious situation.
- 04
put a blanket over
Make (something) seem less serious.
- 05
put a bug in someone's ear
To make a small suggestion or give a hint that causes the listener to act.
- 06
put a damper on
To stop people from enjoying an activity.
- 07
put a foot wrong
To make a mistake.
- 08
put a gun to someone's head
To compel someone (to do something); to create a situation in which someone has no alternative course of action.
Last updated August 10, 2026