to put one across
- phrasal verb
- UK
- He thought he could put one across on us, but we saw through his story.
Examples
-
They tried to put one across with a fake letter, but it didn't work.
-
I can't believe you managed to put one across on the whole committee.
-
Don't put one across on me!
-
She put one across on her friends during the prank.
-
He tried to put one across by pretending to be someone else, but we figured it out.
-
I was shocked to learn that he managed to put one across on the entire team with his clever disguise.
-
During the meeting, she almost put one across when she claimed to have completed the project alone.
Synonyms
∞
1.3
To say something that is not true to trick someone
545
2.1
To trick someone into believing something that is not true
289
3.5
To make someone believe something false so you can get what you want
229
3.9
To make someone believe something that is not true to get an advantage
152
3.9
Make someone believe something that is not true
73
6.3
Make someone believe something that is not true
65
7.2
To trick someone, often as a joke
63
6.9
Give a false story about someone or something to trick people
57
6.4
To trick someone into believing something false
41
7.3
To make up false information to trick people
37
6.9
To make something or someone look real when they are not
12
8.3
To trick someone by pretending you want to help them
11
2.8
To fool someone as a joke
10
4.3
Make someone believe something that is not true
8
8.2
To trick someone by hiding the truth
8
7.4
Treat someone as stupid to trick or cheat them
6
8.9
To trick someone by using false words or charm
6
3.9
To make all the people believe something that is not true
4
5.9
To say something that is not exactly what happened to make it look better
4
7.9
To trick someone into believing something false
4
7.8
To make someone believe something that is not true
2
4.5
To trick people into believing something false
2
8.9
To trick someone into believing something false
1
8.0
To tell someone a false story to impress or trick them
1
7.7
To trick someone to get their money
1
9.6
To try to trick someone by saying things that are not true
1
9.9
To trick someone so they look silly
1
8.8
To trick someone as a joke
To trick someone into believing something false
Antonyms
How Deceptive
Surface Forms
Morphology
put + one + across
The meaning 'to deceive or trick' is not transparently built from 'put' (to place/perform), 'one' (a person), and 'across' (to the other side/transmit). Although 'put across' can mean 'to convey' or 'present', that sense does not predict deception, and the idiomatic extension to 'put one across' is unpredictable without exposure. Therefore a B1 learner who only knows the constituents is unlikely to derive the intended meaning.
Etymology
The phrasal verb put one across may come from the image of sliding a trick or a fake paper across a table so someone will believe it. You literally put a false thing across to them to fool them, so it now means 'to deceive or trick someone'.