put through
Meaning(s)
1. connect someone's telephone call, cause someone to undergo something challenging
Popularity
High
Professional
High
Social
How to Memorize
can you put me through to customer care, please?/put someone through an ordeal
Analysis
The phrasal verb 'put through' can mean to connect somebody by telephone. So, you can 'put a call through' or ask to be 'put through' to someone in order to speak to them. To be 'put through something' can also mean to experience something difficult or unpleasant, usually as a test or an unpleasant ordeal. You can also use 'put through' when you want to talk about something that you have followed through to its successful conclusion. So, you can 'put a deal through'; a proposal could be 'put through'; or you can 'put someone through college' or school. This last example can also refer to paying for someone to go to college.
Social Examples (Basic)
- When I noticed the problem with the phone I bought, I rang up my network provider and asked to be put through to customer care.
- At the gym class, the instructor really put us through our paces. It was exhausting!
Professional Examples (Basic)
- Alan's secretary said that she couldn't put me through to him at that time as he was in the middle of a very important meeting, but assured me that she would get him to call me back as soon as he was finished.
- Hold the line please, sir, I'm putting you through to the Accounts Department now.
- My boss put me through a terrible ordeal last week, insisting that I work 12 hour days to make sure that the project was completed before the deadline.