-off
1 Americanadverb
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so as to be no longer supported or attached.
This button is about to come off.
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so as to be no longer covering or enclosing: to take the wrapping off.
to take a hat off;
to take the wrapping off.
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away from a place: to look off toward the west.
to run off;
to look off toward the west.
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away from a path, course, etc.; aside.
This road branches off to Grove City.
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so as to be away or on one's way: to cast off.
to start off early;
to cast off.
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away from what is considered normal, regular, standard, or the like.
to go off on a tangent.
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from a charge or price.
He took 10 percent off for all cash purchases.
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at a distance in space or future time: Summer is only a week off.
to back off a few feet;
Summer is only a week off.
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out of operation or effective existence.
Turn the lights off.
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into operation or action.
The alarm goes off at noon.
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so as to interrupt continuity or cause discontinuance.
Negotiations have been broken off.
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in absence from work, service, a job, etc..
two days off at Christmas.
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to kill off all the inhabitants.
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with prompt or ready performance.
to dash a letter off.
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to fulfillment, or into execution or effect.
The contest came off on the appointed day.
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into nonexistence or nothingness.
My headache passed off soon.
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so as to be delineated, divided, or apportioned.
Mark it off into equal parts.
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away from a state of consciousness.
I must have dozed off.
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Nautical. away from the land, a ship, the wind, etc.
preposition
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so as no longer to be supported by, attached to, on, resting on, or unified with: Break a piece of bread off the loaf.
Take your feet off the table!
Break a piece of bread off the loaf.
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deviating from: off course.
off balance;
off course.
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below or less than the usual or expected level or standard: I was off my golf game.
20 percent off the marked price;
I was off my golf game.
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away, disengaged, or resting from.
to be off duty on Tuesdays.
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Informal. refraining or abstaining from; denying oneself the pleasure, company, practice, etc., of.
He's off gambling.
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away from; apart or distant from.
a village off the main road.
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leading into or away from.
an alley off 12th Street.
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not fixed on or directed toward, as the gaze, eyes, etc..
Their eyes weren't off the king for a moment.
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Informal. from (a specified source).
I bought it off a street vendor.
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from or of, indicating material or component parts.
to lunch off cheese and fruit.
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from or by such means or use of: living off his parents.
living off an inheritance;
living off his parents.
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Nautical. at some distance to seaward of.
off Cape Hatteras.
adjective
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in error; wrong.
You are off on that point.
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slightly abnormal or not quite sane.
He is a little off, but he's really harmless.
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not up to standard; not so good or satisfactory as usual; inferior or subnormal.
a good play full of off moments.
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no longer in effect, in operation, or in process.
The agreement is off.
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stopped from flowing, as by the closing of a valve.
The electricity is off.
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in a specified state, circumstance, etc..
to be badly off for money.
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(of time) free from work or duty; nonworking.
a pastime for one's off hours.
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not working at one's usual occupation.
We're off Wednesdays during the summer.
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of less than the ordinary activity, liveliness, or lively interest; slack.
an off season in the tourist trade.
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on the off chance that we'd find her at home.
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more distant; farther.
the off side of a wall.
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(of a vehicle, single animal, or pair of animals hitched side by side) of, being, or pertaining to the right as seen from the rider's or driver's viewpoint (near ).
the off horse;
the off side.
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starting on one's way; leaving: They're off and running in the third race at Aqueduct.
I'm off to Europe on Monday.
They're off and running in the third race at Aqueduct.
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lower in price or value; down.
Stock prices were off this morning.
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Nautical. noting one of two like things that is the farther from the shore; seaward.
the off side of the ship.
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Cricket. noting or pertaining to that side of the wicket or of the field opposite that on which the batsman stands.
noun
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the state or fact of being off.
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Cricket. the off side.
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
verb phrase
idioms
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get it off. get.
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off with,
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take away; remove.
Off with those muddy boots before you step into this kitchen!
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cut off.
Off with his head!
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off and on,
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Also on and off. with intervals between; intermittently.
to work off and on.
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Nautical. on alternate tacks.
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off of, off.
Take your feet off of the table!
abbreviation
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offered.
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office.
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officer.
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official.
preposition
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used to indicate actions in which contact is absent or rendered absent, as between an object and a surface
to lift a cup off the table
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used to indicate the removal of something that is or has been appended to or in association with something else
to take the tax off potatoes
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out of alignment with
we are off course
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situated near to or leading away from
just off the High Street
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not inclined towards
I'm off work
I've gone off you
adverb
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(particle) so as to be deactivated or disengaged
turn off the radio
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(particle)
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so as to get rid of
sleep off a hangover
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so as to be removed from, esp as a reduction
he took ten per cent off
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spent away from work or other duties
take the afternoon off
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on a trip, journey, or race
I saw her off at the station
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(particle) so as to be completely absent, used up, or exhausted
this stuff kills off all vermin
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out from the shore or land
the ship stood off
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out of contact; at a distance
the ship was 10 miles off
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out of the present location
the girl ran off
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away in the future
August is less than a week off
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(particle) so as to be no longer taking place
the match has been rained off
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(particle) removed from contact with something, as clothing from the body
the girl took all her clothes off
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offstage
noises off
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commerce (used with a preceding number) indicating the number of items required or produced
please supply 100 off
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occasionally; intermittently
he comes here off and on
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(interjection) a command, often peremptory, or an exhortation to remove or cut off (something specified)
off with his head
off with that coat, my dear
adjective
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not on; no longer operative
the off position on the dial
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(postpositive) not or no longer taking place; cancelled or postponed
the meeting is off
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in a specified condition regarding money, provisions, etc
well off
how are you off for bread?
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unsatisfactory or disappointing
his performance was rather off
an off year for good tennis
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(postpositive) in a condition as specified
I'd be better off without this job
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(postpositive) no longer on the menu; not being served at the moment
sorry, love, haddock is off
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(postpositive) (of food or drink) having gone bad, sour, etc
this milk is off
noun
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012verb
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012Usage
What does -off mean? The suffix -off is used to denote a competition, specifically a final match between two contestants. It is occasionally used in informal terms, especially in sports. In many instances, -off is separated with a hyphen, as in face-off.The form -off comes from the Middle English of, a preposition with a variety of meanings.
Etymology
Origin of off
Originally a stressed variant of of 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Then there are the big things that are off, like Nina’s wild mood swings and the vicious gossip about her mental health among the other Stepford wives of the area.
From Los Angeles Times
He’s also an investor and brand advisor for MSP Sports Capital, which purchased the X Games — James is a seven-time X Games gold medalist — in 2022, kicking off his move from snow moguls to business mogul.
From Los Angeles Times
Elsewhere, world number 24 Ryan Joyce produced a composed display to see off fellow Englishman Owen Bates, averaging 95.27 and hitting nine of his 14 attempts at double.
From BBC
It heard he should have been identified as a threat and action taken sooner after he was reported as suspicious by a member of the public, who was "fobbed off".
From BBC
“We didn’t pass off the full tariff, and we mitigated wherever we could.”
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
