How to Use put-upon in a Sentence

put-upon

adjective
  • Dilbert, the put-upon chronicler of office life, has been given the pink slip.
    Chris Lamb, Fortune, 3 Mar. 2023
  • Eventually, the put-upon Redelmo steals his way across the room and ducks through a doorway.
    James Sullivan, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Aug. 2023
  • Huller’s performance as the put-upon daughter of a prankster father earned rave reviews, and the actor says Hollywood took interest — but not for long.
    Jenelle Riley, Variety, 28 Dec. 2023
  • In a small role, Anjan Vasan nails the put-upon female cop (the lone one in the department) seeking to unmask this cursing culprit, a task that’s hard to achieve since she through the quicksand of sexism that surrounds her.
    Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2024
  • But once the truth of Reena’s demise is revealed, the sympathy for these put-upon characters starts to increasingly get in the way of true empathy for their experiences.
    Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Apr. 2024
  • Nicholas Hoult stars as a put-upon underling who falls in love with a New Orleans cop (Awkwafina) and decides to take a stand against his controlling employer.
    Keith Phipps, Rolling Stone, 4 Apr. 2023
  • On a 115-degree summer afternoon in a wilting, AC-challenged Marseilles apartment block, a put-upon middle-aged wife passes out on her balcony.
    Guy Lodge, Variety, 21 May 2024
  • Downs also stars as Jimmy, Ava and Deborah’s put-upon manager.
    Alexis Soloski, New York Times, 31 May 2024
  • Enrique Duenas is King Arthur’s devoted if put-upon servant Patsy.
    David L. Coddon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Sep. 2023
  • Sandler plays the devoted but put-upon husband with a delicate balance of compassion and aloofness, and in moments like this, a wounded candor comes through that is oddly touching.
    Calum Marsh, New York Times, 31 Mar. 2023
  • Peter Pan’s closest thing to a hero might be the show within a show’s put-upon stage manager (Chris Leask), who wanders through the background of scenes fixing the lighting and unsticking the actors before being thrust into a starring role himself.
    Vulture, 19 Apr. 2023
  • Revolving around our beloved, put-upon protagonist returning to her deceased father’s homeland to perform one final favor, this threequel is surprisingly lifeless and almost laugh-less.
    Courtney Howard, Variety, 7 Sep. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'put-upon.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: