put-on

1 of 3

adjective

ˈpu̇t-ˈȯn 

-ˈän

: pretended, assumed

put-on

2 of 3

noun

ˈpu̇t-ˌȯn 

-ˌän

1

: an instance of putting someone on

conversational put-ons are related to old-fashioned joshing

—Jacob Brackman

2

: parody, spoof

a kind of put-on of every pretentious film ever made

—C. 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

b

: exaggerate, overstate

4

: perform, produce

put on a play

5

a

: to mislead deliberately especially for amusement

the interviewer … must be put down—or possibly, put on

—Melvin Maddocks

b

: kid entry 3 sense 1

you're putting me on

Synonyms

Adjective

• mock
• fake
• strained
• unnatural
• false
• exaggerated
• mechanical
• artificial
• simulated
• affected
• contrived
• pseudo

Noun

• pretense
• facade
• show
• guise
• act
• pose

Verb

• throw (on)
• don
• slip (on or into)
• rig

Examples of put-on in a Sentence

Adjective

a put-on goofy voice

Noun

my bravery was all a put-on—I was scared out of my wits

for a moment, I couldn't tell if the commercial was serious or a deadpan put-on of ads by other insurance companies

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

With access to troves of archival footage, Braverman shows Kaufman transforming the very nature of comedy by launching the put-on into existential extremes. —Sheldon Pearce, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2025

But this isn’t what irks rage’s older detractors, who grew up loving Dr. Dre and knew the misogyny of 2001 was not the put-on some of the gun talk might’ve been. —Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2025

Verb

She's done research on bees in Belize, where people keep hives far from their homes and livestock and put on their protective beekeeping clothing in their trucks before getting out near a hive. —Elizabeth Weise, USA Today, 23 June 2025

Each year, the event brings the nominees to Broadway to put on a show – in just 10 days. —Sequoia Carrillo, NPR, 23 June 2025

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

Rhymes for put-on

• anton
• argon
• axon
• baronne
• baryon
• baton
• boron
• buisson
• bygone
• capon
• cardon
• chiffon

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