kickoff

American  

[kik-awf, -of] / ˈkɪkˌɔf, -ˌɒf /

Or kick-off

noun

1. Football. a place kick or a drop kick from the 40-yard line of the team kicking at the beginning of the first and third periods or after the team kicking has scored a touchdown or field goal.

2. Soccer. a kick that puts a stationary ball into play from the center line of the field at the start of a quarter or after a goal has been scored.

3. the initial stage of something; start; beginning.

   the campaign kickoff.

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Etymology

Origin of kickoff

First recorded in 1855–60; noun use of verb phrase kick off

Example Sentences

Steinberger left before the Super Bowl kickoff to record a conversation with podcaster Lex Fridman, he said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 18, 2026

Umber said that both the symphony and youth orchestra will return in “Beethoven 9,” the kickoff to “Celebrating Gustavo at the Bowl.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 18, 2026

In the most ambitious boycott fantasies, the U.S. will somehow be canceled as host nation, only weeks before the tournament’s kickoff.

From Salon • Feb. 1, 2026

Bad Bunny will play the halftime show while Green Day will perform ahead of the kickoff.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 26, 2026

The participants in the kickoff rally seemed much more concerned about their own private fates this evening than they were about the fate of the world.

From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole