put behind
phrasal verb·1 sense·particle behind
Meanings
Treat a difficult experience as no longer relevant
Why “behind”? Everyone else moves on. What stays behind is left there.
“She put the divorce behind her.”
“He put the failed exam behind him.”
Don't confuse with
Put behind means treat a difficult experience as no longer relevant. Put under means anaesthetise someone before a procedure.
Test yourself
“She put the divorce behind her.” What does it mean?
Nearby in the meaning map
Sink In connects verbs by particle pattern, contrast pairs, and shared base verbs.
put under
A contrast learners often mix up
Anaesthetise someone before a procedure
fall behind
Same behind pattern: leftover
Fail to keep pace with others; Of an item, be left forgotten or detached from a group; Of a payment, become late or owed
hold behind
Same behind pattern: leftover
Keep someone or something back from going forward
leave behind
Same behind pattern: leftover
Forget or fail to take something with you when you go; Surpass someone in development or achievement; Depart from someone, ending a relationship or association
remain behind
Same behind pattern: leftover
Stay in place when others move on
stay behind
Same behind pattern: leftover
Remain in a place after others have left; Remain at school after class as a punishment
put across
Same base verb: put
Communicate clearly
put aside
Same base verb: put
Save for a specific purpose; Ignore or set a feeling aside
Practice “put behind” in Sink In
Drill this and 600+ phrasal verbs with spaced repetition, organised by particle.