put up — raise or fix something in a place
phrasal verbB1IELTS 5+neutralcommon
to attach or place something so that it stands upright or is displayed, like a picture, a tent, or a sign.
Say it like a native
Textbook We affixed the decorations to the walls.
Native We put the decorations up.
'Put up' is the everyday verb for displaying or erecting something; 'affix to' is formal.
Pattern: put something up
In use
- We put up a tent in the garden for the kids to play in.daily life
- During festivals, people often put up decorations to make their homes look more festive.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ Let's put up it on the wall.
✓ Let's put it up on the wall.
With a pronoun, the object goes in the middle: 'put it up'.
Common collocations
put up + fixture— a shelf, a tent, the decorations, a poster
Don't confuse it
'Put up' (raise/fix) is not the same as 'put away' (to store something).
Related
- put up (let someone stay in your home) — Another meaning of 'put up' is 'let someone stay in your home'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.