put on; putting on; puts on
1
2
: to cause to act or operate : apply
put on more speed
3
a
: add
put on weight
b
5
a
: to mislead deliberately especially for amusement
the interviewer … must be put down—or possibly, put on—
Melvin Maddocks
Melvin Maddocks
b
: kid entry 3 sense 1
you're putting me on
Synonyms
Adjective
- affected
- artificial
- assumed
- bogus
- contrived
- factitious
- fake
- false
- feigned
- forced
- mechanical
- mock
- phony
- phoney
- plastic
- pretended
- pseudo
- sham
- simulated
- spurious
- strained
- unnatural
Noun
- act
- airs
- charade
- disguise
- facade
- façade
- front
- guise
- masquerade
- playacting
- pose
- pretense
- pretence
- semblance
- show
Verb
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
Sara Netzley, EW.com, 29 Oct. 2024
In the end, as Reno and the reader may have sensed all along, her detachment is just another performance, a cool-girl put-on not so different from Rachel K’s burlesque.
—Lily Meyer, The Atlantic, 3 Sep. 2024
Dominic Patten, Deadline, 22 Nov. 2024
Roger, a 6-year-old tan and white Kangal shepherd mix, was put on the euthanasia list this fall.
—Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for put-on 
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Adjective
Also, Burgess is British IRL, so props to him for faking a bad accent, then using a put-on American one for the rest of the episode.
—Sara Netzley, EW.com, 29 Oct. 2024
In the end, as Reno and the reader may have sensed all along, her detachment is just another performance, a cool-girl put-on not so different from Rachel K’s burlesque.
—Lily Meyer, The Atlantic, 3 Sep. 2024
Verb
Having said that, no new hearing has been put on the calendar yet.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 22 Nov. 2024
Roger, a 6-year-old tan and white Kangal shepherd mix, was put on the euthanasia list this fall.
—Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for put-on
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 28 Nov. 2024.
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