to put oneself across
- phrasal verb
- During the interview, she struggled to put herself across in a way that showcased her skills and experience.
Examples
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I've put myself across.
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It's important to put yourself across clearly when discussing your ideas at the meeting.
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He always finds a way to put himself across effectively, making sure his audience understands his message.
Synonyms
Say something so other people understand what you mean
Make an idea or message clear so other people understand it
To seem to other people in a particular way
To show yourself as a certain kind of person to make others think that way
To make your voice or emotion clear to others
To show your skills and good points to get opportunities
To explain an idea so people understand it
Speak or act confidently so people notice and respect you
Make an idea or opinion clear so others understand
To say how you feel or what you need instead of using actions
Make yourself look good to other people
Antonyms
How Clear
Surface Forms
Morphology
The sense 'to express oneself clearly' is partly derivable from 'put' (place/express) + 'across' (to the other side) with 'oneself' marking the reflexive object, so there is an obvious metaphor of transferring an idea to others. However, the verbal idiom 'put across' involves a metaphorical extension from spatial placement to successful communication and is not fully predictable for a B1 learner without prior exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Put oneself across comes from the image of physically putting yourself across a room or stage so people can see and hear you. That's why to put yourself across means 'to express yourself clearly' so others understand your ideas or personality.