put oneself in someone's shoes

English

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

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Verb

put oneself in someone's shoes (third-person singular simple present puts oneself in someone's shoes, present participle putting oneself in someone's shoes, simple past and past participle put oneself in someone's shoes)

1. (figuratively) To try to look at a situation from a different point of view; as if one were the other person; to empathise.

   Synonym: put oneself in someone's place

   If you could just put yourself in his shoes for a moment, perhaps you would understand why it is not as easy as you seem to think.

Related terms

• stand in someone's shoes
• fill someone's shoes

Translations

look at a situation as if one were the other person

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 設身處地／设身处地 (zh) (shèshēnchǔdì), 換位思考／换位思考 (huànwèi sīkǎo), 將心比心／将心比心 (jiāngxīnbǐxīn)

• Dutch: zich in een ander verplaatsen
• Finnish: asettua asemaan (+ possessive suffix)
• French: se mettre à la place (fr), se mettre dans la peau de quelqu’un
• Italian: mettersi nei panni di un altro
• Korean: 역지사지 (ko) (yeokjisaji)
• Polish: znaleźć się w czyjejś skórze, postawić się na czyimś miejscu
• Portuguese: pôr-se no lugar (de alguém)
• Russian: поста́вить себя́ на ме́сто (postávitʹ sebjá na mésto)
• Swedish: sätta sig in, leva sig in