1.
to place something that you are holding
“Put the box down.”
“Put your phone down!”
“I put it down on the table.”
Synonyms: to set down, to place
Phrasal verb
What does put down mean?
Meaning: to stop holding something and place it somewhere
B1
This page for:
Quick answer
Put down = to place something that you are holding on a table or on the floor. Put your phone down = stop holding your phone. It can also mean to write something, to criticise someone, or to kill a sick animal. It is separable.
Meanings of the phrasal verb
2.
to write something on a form or list
common“Put down your name here.”
Synonyms: to write down, to note
3.
to criticise someone and make them feel small
figurative“Stop putting him down.”
4.
to kill a sick or old animal
idiomatic“We had to put our dog down.”
Word order
Separable
The object can go between the verb and the particle. With a pronoun (it, them), it always goes between.
Forms
- Present Simple:
- put down
- Past Simple:
- put down
- Past participle:
- put down
- -ing form:
- putting down
Common mistakes to avoid
With a pronoun: in the middle
Put it down ✓ / Put down it ❌. A pronoun (it, them) always goes between put and down.
Meaning 4: be careful
For an animal, put down means to kill it because it is sick or old. It is a strong meaning, so use it with care. Do not confuse it with put a baby down = to put a baby in bed for a sleep.
Practice quiz
Question 1 / 3The Big Challenge question bank
Related pages: put down
Pages on a similar topic or with a similar use, so you can keep exploring.
What's next?
Put down: you understand the rule. Now practise it.
Understanding a rule is only the first step. On PLAY, you use it in real situations, at your own pace, until it becomes automatic.
Practise “put down” on PLAYFree · No sign-up · 3 minutes
For teachersPut down: a ready-to-use lesson sequence
The Academy gives you step-by-step exercises, answer keys and a tracking dashboard: you keep the teaching, and the tool takes care of the practice and the marking.
Discover the Academy30-day free trial · No bank card needed
English contestPut down: often tested in the English contest
Instead of another class test, your students answer questions based on the CEFR levels, in a contest that brings the whole school together.
Register my students5,000 students every year · Primary and secondary
Frequently asked questions
What does put down mean?+
Put down has four meanings: (1) to place something that you are holding; (2) to write something; (3) to make someone feel stupid; (4) to kill a sick or old animal (a vet does it). The most common meaning is the first one.
Is put down separable?+
Yes. Put down the book / put the book down / put it down. With a pronoun, the pronoun always goes in the middle.
What is the difference between put down and put away?+
Put down = to place something on the table or on the floor, just for now. Put away = to put something back in its usual place (a cupboard, a drawer). Put down your bag / Put your books away.
What does put a dog down mean?+
It means that a vet kills the dog without pain because it is very sick or very old. They had to put their dog down. This is meaning 4, so use it with care. A softer way to say it is put to sleep.
What is the past simple of put down?+
Put down (the same). Put is irregular but never changes: put / put / put. I put down my bag can be present or past.
Related phrasal verbs
Updated on 12 November 2026 by the Big Challenge teaching team. Every year, more than 500,000 students across Europe take part in our English contest, created in 1999. Our teaching approach →
The Big Challenge · Updated on 12 November 2026 · Source: www.thebigchallenge.com/bl/academy/learn-english/phrasal-verbs/put-down
© The Big Challenge. Copying allowed for classroom use. Every year, more than 500,000 students across Europe take part in our English contest, created in 1999.