Answered by Yesenia Pavlotsky, linguist-morphologist, expert of the Institute of Philology, mass media and psychology of the Novosibirsk State Pedagogical University.

Native speakers have made the misuse of these words such a problem that it's hard to believe anyone's ignorance of the differences. dress And put on. And yet, the rate of use of these words remains relevant and frequently requested in search engines.

Dress up And put on, of course, not variants of the norm, but two different words with different lexical meanings. At least for now.

Dress up— whom, what means to put someone in a garment. Dress up the child.

put on — What, means to pull, pull on (clothing, shoes, cover), covering, dressing something in something. Put on a suit, headphones.

How else to spot the differences: word dress combines with animate nouns, and put on with the inanimate. It is only necessary not to forget that in addition to the actual consciousness, we also have an ancient consciousness, which, like instincts, is dormant, but is always somewhere nearby. Therefore, anthropomorphic, human-like objects, our language also considers animated. So we also dress the doll and the mannequin, although in general, for the same reason, we can also dress less human-like objects that the language “confuses” with the living: a dead man, an oyster, a microbe.

More words dress And put on enter into different system relations: antonyms put on - take off opposed to antonyms dress - undress .

But if everything is so harmonious and obvious, why do native speakers constantly confuse these words in the flow of speech, even if they know everything about the differences between these paronyms?

The fact is that the language simultaneously strives both to accumulate resources and to cleanse the system of unnecessary things. Language as a living system is characterized by a "shuttle movement" along the base - up and down. He takes the necessary resources, sorts them and gets rid of what did not take root, was not useful or worn out. So it is constantly updated, at the same time maintaining harmony and consistency.

It happens that the system is fragmented and becomes more complex in certain areas for the needs of the language, but it happens that such fragmentation becomes obsolete. In the vocabulary, this process can result in generalization: one word covers all other words with different meanings or shades of meanings. For example, today the system perceives the words dress And put on as a fragmentation that has lost its meaning. Now the word dress absorbs words put on And put on shoes. When this absorption is completed, the word dress how the stronger one will have three meanings that once belonged to different words. The phenomena of reality will not go anywhere, but the language will save resources, and this is normal.

Now we see how this process manifests itself: failures occur in the speech of native speakers. People who know the difference between dress And put on, they say something like this: “Now I’ll put on ... oh, I’ll put on a jacket”. This does not mean that they are not literate enough - just that one word absorbs another word and its meaning.

So, today paronyms dress And put on strictly differ in meaning, but very soon the overlapping of the meanings of these words may become the norm.

The verbs “put on” and “put on” are so criminally similar that most people use them without even thinking about the nuances they convey. In the meantime, they are. So, "put on" or "put on" - which is correct? In fact, both of these forms have a right to exist. But their use in a particular sentence is determined by the noun to which they refer.

What is the difference?

Let's look at the meaning of these verbs in order to decide once and for all how to “put on” or “dress” correctly.

Everything is very simple: we put on something, and we dress someone. Thus, in order to make sure correct use verb, we need to check whether it refers to an animate or inanimate noun - and everything will immediately fall into place.

For example, we put on a hat (what?). But the child (whom?) We dress.

Let's make sure again different meaning the words "put on" and "dress", picking up synonyms for them. Synonyms for "put on" are the words "put on", "pull on". Synonyms for "dress" can be considered the words "clothe", "equip".

Thus, the principles of using these words immediately become clear - and you don’t even have to go into lexical jungle.

Little catch

Every rule has an exception. The girl dresses the doll, despite the fact that the doll is an inanimate object. The clerk in the store will also dress, not put on, the mannequin.

Easy to check

If you doubt the correct use of the verbs "put on" or "put on", there is an unmistakable way to check: pick up antonyms for them, i.e. words that are opposite in meaning. The antonym of the word “put on” is “take off”. The antonym of the word "dress" is "undress".

That's all wisdom. Agree, "undress the hat" sounds ridiculous.

Well, to reinforce the rule, remember a funny saying that will make it easier for you to remember: "They put on Hope, put on clothes."

Anastasia Sorokko

Verb to dress

This verb denotes an action that is performed by someone in relation to someone or to any inanimate object. For example, the following expressions should be given:

1. Dress the child

2. Dress up the old man

3. Dress up the doll

4. Dress up the girl

If you look closely at these sentences, you can see that between the word "dress" and the word, for example, "doll" can you ask who? or what? Let's take a few more examples.

1. Dress up (whom?) brother in clean clothes

2. Dress up (whom?) girl in a fashionable coat

3. Dress up (What?) stuffed animal in an old dress

There is another way to determine which word to use - to put on or put on. The verb "dress" refers to verbs that are called reflexive. That is, it can be used with a particle - Xia. Again, here are a few examples:

1. Dress for the season

2. Dress up in a fashion salon

3. Dress only in new

Verb to put on

The verb to put on, unlike the verb “to put on,” denotes an action that is directed at itself. For example:

1. We need to put on a new suit

2. I will put on something warmer

3. I put on my most beautiful dress

However, there are also such sentences in which the use of the verb "dress" would be simply illogical. Here it is necessary to use only the verb "put on". An example would be the following sentences:

1. Put on a patient gown

2. Put glasses on your nose

3. Put the cover on the chair

4. Put the tires on the wheels

What do all these proposals have in common? Yes, indeed, the verb put on is used here only in relation to inanimate objects (except for the patient). And each such sentence has a short word "on". That is, "to put on" to put something on someone or put on something.

There is another very simple hint that will help you decide how to write correctly - to put on or put on. So, remember - they put something on themselves or on something else, but they dress someone and dress themselves. Example:

1. The girl put on her mother's earrings and looked in the mirror

2. The man put the bait on the hook and cast the rod

3. The girl hastily dressed her brother in a new jacket and went with him to the door.

4. The boy woke up and reluctantly got dressed

So what do they do with the ring? Are they wearing or are they still wearing? Now you know in which case it is necessary to say and write “put on”, and in which case - “put on”.

Verbs ... Probably, many will agree that the main headache associated with them. More precisely, with their correct spelling. And, it seems, at school we were taught the rules of our native language well, and we passed the exam with “good” or even “excellent”, but on you we stubbornly continue to “sculpt” mistake for mistake. For example, which, it would seem, could be simpler than the rule that “not” with verbs is always written separately. And yet we step on this rake.

Let's stop at two

This material is devoted to only two "harmful" verbs. And they differ, in essence, only one or two letters. It is "put on" and "put on". Many do not see a fundamental difference between them and use them as synonyms. And absolutely in vain! By the way, again, if you remember " school years marvelous," namely primary school, then even in one of the textbooks on the Russian language all the nuances of the correct spelling of these verbs were clearly spelled out and the rules were accompanied by pictures for clarity.

So what is the right way to dress or wear?

The one that starts with "o"

Let's start with the verb "dress". Of course, it means action, like this part of speech as a whole. But what exactly? That which is produced by one person in relation to another. Moreover, this other person is either not fully capable, or is an inanimate object. This row includes: a child, an old man, a doll, a mannequin.

Between the verb “to dress” and the noun immediately following it, it is easy to put the case question “who?” or "what?" And then it will be much more difficult to make a mistake.

And another sure way to avoid mistakes. The verb "dress" is quite easy to turn into a so-called reflexive verb - one that is used with the suffix "sya" at the end. Thus, at the output we get the form of "dressing" - in something new, fashionable or seasonal. And with the verb "put on" this number will not work. The word "to put on" simply does not exist in our language. You can only say “just put it on” when this or that clothes fit during the fitting.

And now with the initial "on"

Now it's the turn to deal with the use of the verb "put on." Everything is much simpler here. Try to remember just one rule - the action denoted by this verb is directed mainly at yourself. For example, in phrases such as “put on a new suit” or “put on something warmer”, “put on the most fashion dress" and etc.

Of course, even here there are subtleties - where without them! No wonder Russian is considered one of the most difficult languages ​​for foreigners to learn. So, between the verb "to put on" and the noun in case form, the preposition "on" is used. And we get the following sentences: “It is necessary to put a gown on the patient”, “He put glasses on his nose”, “We put a cover on the chair.” Please note that in all the above examples we are talking about inanimate objects.

What is the result?

So now we can formulate general rule concerning the use of both verbs. We put something on ourselves or another, as a rule, inanimate object. We dress someone else or dress ourselves.

Well, I would like to hope that now fashionistas will not be mistaken when they talk, for example, about a ring and will know exactly what is right to do with it - to wear or put on.

I have long been hurt by hearing when people confuse two simple Russian words: put on and put on. Rather, they do not know how to use them correctly in their speech.
Sometimes it even infuriates when seemingly literate people constantly “put on” something for themselves and others. Especially when it comes from the TV screen, where even many media figures do not know the rules of the Russian language.
So, put on, put on - how to, read below.

Question
How to: dress or put on a dress?

One of the causes of lexical errors in modern speech, oral and written, - indistinguishability of single-root words, in particular, verbs dress (dress) — put on (put on) . And in the live, direct communication of native speakers of the Russian language - in a non-strict colloquial speech; and in book speech- in radio and television programs, in the speeches of politicians at rallies, with various kinds of public statements, deputies in the State Duma, officials on one or another official occasion, one can often find incorrect, erroneous use of lexical units related in terms of word formation. confuse, for example, verbs get used to And get used to, relax And let loose, adverbs objectivist And objectively... (see “From Monitoring violations of speech norms in the media” // Gorbanevsky M. V., Karaulov Yu. N., Shaklein V. M. Do not speak rough language. About violations of norms literary speech in electronic and print media / Ed. Yu. A. Belchikova. M., 2000, p. 19-137 - based on materials from television, radio programs and newspapers), nouns portrait And self-portrait(in the program “Field of Miracles”, on the ORT channel, on August 30, 2002, a participant in the game presented the host with a “self-portrait that her seven-year-old son painted”).
In the use of single-root words, verbs are most "unlucky" to put on (to put on) to put on (to put on) (these verbs are paronyms - see the article " subscriber, subscriber, subscription»).
The named words are also misused by the TV presenter ( …what do you need dress to appear under the dome of the circus// "Do not speak in a rough language", p. 29), and a radio program host ( He's on himself dressed… // Ibid., p. 40), and a TV correspondent (… will be a good occasion dress dress uniform — NTV, 29 Aug. 2002), and a journalist ( Winter has come, dress other shoes// Do not speak in a rough language, p. 28), and pop star ( I can't do anything dress from this collection. // Ibid., p. 106), see in the capital's "Nezavisimaya Gazeta": dated March 12, 1999: " We put on a modernized watch on the right hand».
Verbs dress And put on - multivalued. The meanings in which actions are indicated in relation to a person are as follows:
Dress up - whom, what. 1. Dress someone up. in some clothes. Dress a child, sick, wounded; cf. dress up a doll, mannequin…
put on - What. 1. Pull on, pull on (clothes, shoes, cover, etc.), covering, enveloping someone with something. Put on a suit, skirt, coat, jacket, shoes, mask, gas mask…
Verb dress enters into combination with animate nouns (and with a small number of inanimate ones, denoting the likeness of a person: doll, mannequin, skeleton);put on - with the inanimate.
To complete the description of the lexical-syntactic relations of our verbs, it should be noted that the verb dress enters (within the 1st meaning) in combination with inanimate nouns denoting parts of the body, however, through the mediation of an animate noun ( whom) and always with a prepositional combination of an inanimate noun ( in what - in new form ) or with an inanimate noun in the oblique case ( what - a blanket, a shawl) according to the principle of indirect control. put on the same (within the 1st value) has syntactic links by the same principle with animate nouns: put on (coat) on whom: for grandfather, for child) and with inanimate ones: put on what (on the arm, on the neck), over what(over shirt) under what(under coat).
The difference in the semantics of these words is emphasized by the fact that they form different antonymic pairs: put on - take off, put on - undress.
The semantic originality of each of the verbs is especially clearly revealed when they occur within the same context. In this regard, poetic texts dedicated to the words in question are of great interest. One of the poems was written in late XIX century, now forgotten by the poet V. Krylov, another - by our contemporary N. Matveeva.
Here is the first verse:
Dear friend, don't forget
What dress does not mean put on;
Do not confuse these expressions
Each of them has its own meaning.
You can easily remember this:
Verb "dress" we say when
We put clothes on something
Or we cover something with clothes,
Or otherwise we dress in clothes.
You want to dress yourself more elegantly,
So should a new dress put on,
And you put on your hand with a glove,
When you put on a glove on your hand.
You will dress the child in his dress,
When you put a dress on him.
To whom the native language is both sweet and dear,
He will not endure a single trace of a mistake,
And therefore, my friend, never
Do not make such reservations.
As you can see, and more than a hundred years ago, the use of verbs put on And dress constituted a big problem for native speakers of the Russian language, and even then serious attention was paid to this by the guardians of the correctness of their native language. It is also obvious that these humorous (at the same time linguistically well-founded) verses are still relevant today.
This is confirmed by Novella Matveeva:
"Dress", "put on"… Two words
We confuse so stupidly!
Frosty dawn dawned,
The old grandfather dressed in a fur coat.
And the fur coat, therefore, was put on.
"Dress", "put on"... Let's see:
When to wear and what to wear.
I believe that on the grandfather
Three fur coats can be worn.
But I don't think that grandfather
It can be worn on a fur coat!

These verbs denote actions applicable to a particular person. And often we get confused when and which of these words is more correct to use. Everything is very simple! To teach children in school this wisdom, experienced teachers came up with a stable phrase in a comic form, so that the rule once and for all crashed into memory. "Put on clothes, put on Hope!"

We put on ourselves

Everything is simple! That is, we put something on ourselves (a dress, a jacket, a coat), and we dress someone (or something similar to a person). For example, a favorite doll, a mannequin, a teddy bear. Put on headphones - dress the child, put on a mask - dress Margarita for a walk, put on a hat - dress the Snow Maiden in an outfit.

Real life examples

The verb "clothe" is combined with animate objects to a greater extent, if the definition is clearer. Or with inanimate objects, but which denote animate. Or who were previously animate. Confused? Example! "Put a jacket on a human skeleton!" (Was he once animated, alive? Or implied that it was a man). "Dress a mannequin, according to the latest fashion!", "Dress a Barbie doll in a governess outfit!". These are examples that will help you understand the essence of the differences.

Important!!!

The verb "put on" is used only with inanimate objects worn on animate! "Put on your coat, it's cold out there!" "Put on your gloves, it's winter!"

For the purity of speech

Wear or wear - correct use These words emphasize your education and self-discipline, which restrains you from incorrect pronunciation, moving away from the purity of speech.

“Put on a shirt, dress Natasha!”

Advice

It is more visual and interesting to consider pairwise antonyms for these unique words! So, for example, the word "put on" will always be "take off", and the word "dress" - "undress"! "When to wear, and what to wear, let's remember, watch!"

Dictionary

The traditional delimitation of similar verbs can be seen in explanatory dictionaries Russian language by S. Ozhegov and Ushakov, but they are not always at hand, and even accessing the Internet is not always possible. That is why we recommend using our tips and visual cues that stick in your memory. If you have plenty of time to think, use modern interactive dictionaries and make sure you use them correctly.

What is the difference?

Conclusion:

It is important, in a dialogue with the interlocutor, to quickly find out which of these verbs you need to use, spending a split second on this choice! Without giving even a look that he thought about this choice. Think it's easier to remember a dressed skeleton in a hat with a feather and a raincoat, or a dressed Nadya-Nadezhda, a dressed shirt, or a dressed Natasha! Putting on clothes is like a quick check of the correctness of the choice of the verb or a method from the contrary. We are all different, the choice is yours! Which is easier for you to remember.

DRESS Natasha in furs!