put up
To cajole or dare (someone) to do (something).
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“He put me up to asking her out.”
“My friends put me up to calling in sick so we could go to the beach.”
“She suspected her rival had put the naive intern up to leaking the documents, though neither would admit it.”
- 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