put to bed
put to bed — idiom
1. to finish handling a difficult matter so that it no longer needs attention.
to finish handling a difficult matter so that it no longer needs attention.
Tara worked late on Friday to put the budget argument to bed before the holiday.
put + [issue] + to bed for settling a matter
The lawyers finally put the long contract dispute to bed after months of talks.
put + [long-running problem] + to bed
Once the report was signed, the whole safety question was put to bed for good.
passive: be put to bed
Christopher wanted to put the rumour to bed, so he answered every question openly.
put + [rumour] + to bed to stop it spreading
- put the matter to bed
- put the argument to bed
- put the question to bed
- put the rumour to bed
- finally put to bed
- reopen
used when a settled matter is brought back for discussion
Grammar Patterns
put + [issue] + to bed
be put to bed
Usage Note
Object is usually a problem, argument, question, or rumour that people want to stop worrying about. Frequently passive ('the matter was put to bed').
Common Mistakes
Incorrect: 'We put to bed the project.' Correct: 'We put the project to bed.' — a short object normally sits between 'put' and 'to bed'.
Incorrect: 'They put down the debate to bed.' Correct: 'They put the debate to bed.' — do not add extra words inside the phrase.
2. to complete the last steps on a newspaper or magazine so it can be sent to be pr
to complete the last steps on a newspaper or magazine so it can be sent to be printed.
The night editor put the Sunday paper to bed just after two in the morning.
put + [edition] + to bed at a deadline
Once the front page was approved, the whole edition was put to bed.
passive: be put to bed
Salma checked every headline twice before she put the magazine to bed.
put + [magazine] + to bed before printing
The newsroom rushed to put the morning paper to bed during the power cut.
put + [paper] + to bed under time pressure
- put the paper to bed
- put the edition to bed
- put the magazine to bed
- put the issue to bed
- finalise
more formal; can apply to any document, not just print
- send to press
publishing term for the same final step before printing
Grammar Patterns
put + [edition] + to bed
be put to bed
Usage Note
Object is a publication or its edition, not a single article. Common in newsroom and printing speech; often passive when the deadline rather than the person is the focus.
Common Mistakes
Incorrect: 'She put to bed the newspaper.' Correct: 'She put the newspaper to bed.' — the publication goes between 'put' and 'to bed'.
Incorrect: 'They printed to bed the magazine.' Correct: 'They put the magazine to bed.' — the fixed phrase always uses 'put'.