put before

put (someone or something) before (someone or something)

1. To place or set someone or something in front or at the foot of someone or something. They put plates of exotic fruits, meats, and cheeses before their guests. The tribe put her before the giant ape as an offering to help protect their village from harm.
2. To present someone or something for consideration or judgment. You will be put before God to have your sins judged and the fate of your eternal soul determined. She put the evidence before her parents to prove that she was not the one who broke the television.
3. To place more value, importance, or concern on someone or something as opposed to another person or thing. I put my daughter before everything and everyone else—she is my entire world. She put her career before her family, and they all resented her for it.
See also: before, put
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

put before

v.
1. To place something in front of someone or something, especially as an offering: The waiters put plates of cheese before us.
2. To present some information or argument to someone or something for consideration: The lawyer put the evidence before the judge. The final arguments were put before the jury.
3. To consider someone or something as being more important than someone or something else: He always put his family before his career as an artist.
See also: before, put
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • be/have done with somebody/something
  • be in line with (someone or something)
  • better of
  • (someone or something) promises well
  • begin with
  • begin with (someone or something)
  • bird has flown, the
  • beware of
  • beware of (someone or something)
  • be rough on (someone or something)