put-on

1 of 3

adjective

put-on

2 of 3

noun

1
: an instance of putting someone on
conversational put-ons are related to old-fashioned joshingJacob Brackman
2
: parody, spoof
a kind of put-on of every pretentious film ever madeC. A. Ridley

put on

3 of 3

verb

put on; putting on; puts on

transitive verb

1
a
: to dress oneself in : don
b
: to make part of one's appearance or behavior
c
: feign
put a saintly manner on
2
: to cause to act or operate : apply
put on more speed
3
a
: add
put on weight
4
: perform, produce
put on a play
5
a
: to mislead deliberately especially for amusement
the interviewer … must be put down—or possibly, put onMelvin Maddocks
b
: kid entry 3 sense 1
you're putting me on

Examples of put-on in a Sentence

Verb I put on a coat and shoes to go outside. some critics are putting it on when they say it's the best comedy ever made
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Temple definitely comes closest to caricature of the three leads, but the show is aware of this, and eventually establishes a reason why the accent and a lot of Dot’s personality seems like a put-on. Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 21 Nov. 2023 More importantly, the movies are mostly devoid of an outsider’s gaze, although some of Montañez (Jesse Garcia)’s quippy voiceovers feel like a put-on for the benefit of gringos. Rebecca Sun, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019 What is behind it, however, is both method and mischief, and a perpetual Mad magazine sense of put-on. Stephen Birmingham, Town & Country, 10 Aug. 2023 Drake is now 36 years old with 17 years in the music industry, nearly a dozen Billboard chart-topping hits, and more put-on accents and flows than a rapping AI. Dylan Green, Vulture, 26 July 2023 Consider Scorcese gangster flicks, the same actors jawing put-on accents, the AM jukebox soundtracks, fatiguing runtimes, and that same walkabout-voiceover shot. Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 5 June 2023
Verb
With a peel-and-stick design, these stickers are easy to put on and take off so teens will be able to experiment on their own and with friends. Casey Clark, Parents, 17 Nov. 2023 The Food Network star, 55, will put on the first-ever Flavortown Fest from June 1-2, 2024, PEOPLE can reveal exclusively. Ana Calderone, Peoplemag, 17 Nov. 2023 The advice makes sense when cleaning a stone hearth, too: Dampen the whole hearth, then put on protective gloves and apply the cleaning solution to the black area. Jeanne Huber, Washington Post, 17 Nov. 2023 The two executives who did were put on leave after the cries for boycotts started. Chris Morris, Fortune, 16 Nov. 2023 No one was being put on trial for carpet-bombing German and Japanese cities in which hundreds of thousands of civilians died. Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 16 Nov. 2023 The leader of a Haitian gang that allegedly kidnapped 16 U.S. citizens and killed one in another incident has been put on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, the agency announced Wednesday. Luke Barr, ABC News, 15 Nov. 2023 Lately, on her Instagram, Monica has been putting on look after look. Kerane Marcellus, Essence, 15 Nov. 2023 Christmas Show: Point Loma Nazarene University Choir and Chorale put on their 22nd annual Christmas Show, aka Cider Celebration, from 6 and 8 p.m. Dec. 1-2 in the university’s Crill Auditorium. Linda McIntosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Nov. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'put-on.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1625, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1919, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of put-on was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near put-on

Cite this Entry

“Put-on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/put-on. Accessed 2 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

put-on

1 of 2 noun
ˈpu̇t-ˌȯn,
-ˌän
1
: a false appearance or presentation
my bravery was all a put-on
2
: a joke in which someone is fooled

put on

2 of 2 verb
(ˈ)pu̇t-ˈȯn,
-ˈän
1
a
: to dress oneself in
b
: to make part of one's appearance or behavior
c
: pretend entry 1 sense 1
put on a show of anger
2
: exaggerate, overstate
they're putting it on when they make such claims
3
: perform sense 3b, produce
put on an entertaining act
4
: kid entry 2 sense 1, fool
you're putting me on
put-on adjective
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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