fight off
phrasal verb
fought off; fighting off; fights off
: to defend oneself against (someone or something) by fighting or struggling : to avoid being harmed or overcome by (someone or something) by fighting or struggling
They fought off the attack/attackers.
I'm trying to fight off a cold.
Examples of fight off in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The audience sees Alba wielding a blade and fighting off a man with a chainsaw, among other badass moves.
—
Raechal Shewfelt, EW.com, 21 May 2024
The inclusion of protest songs and the desire of the local community together to fight off the invaders is imbued with warlike determination and revolutionary zeal.
—Martin Dale, Variety, 17 May 2024
Ross fought off constant internal turmoil, sensing Tokyo as her best shot at a long-elusive gold medal after two previous stabs in the Olympics.
—Luca Evans, Orange County Register, 16 May 2024
In a surprise counteroffensive that fall, Ukrainian troops fought off the drive to the city, then pushed Russian forces out of the region, reclaiming a huge swath of land.
—Kim Barker, New York Times, 15 May 2024
The Gladiators fought off the Gators’ comeback attempt in the bottom half to preserve a 6-4 win.
—Jacob Steinberg, Baltimore Sun, 18 Apr. 2024
Advertisement But Pages fought off an inside cut fastball and fisted his fourth single of the night, his game-winner traveling all of 205 feet with an exit velocity of 63.4 mph but perfectly placed to spark a wild celebration with teammates in the infield.
—Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 4 May 2024
More than 100 students were slumped around the oak-and-marble lobby of Hamilton Hall, the main hub of Columbia College, fighting off sleep.
—Edmund Lee, New York Times, 3 May 2024
A couple years into her time at Cigna, Day noticed some doctors prescribing a costly treatment called intravenous immunoglobulin, or IVIG, that helps patients with weakened immune systems fight off infections.
—Patrick Rucker, ProPublica, 29 Apr. 2024
Raechal Shewfelt, EW.com, 21 May 2024
The inclusion of protest songs and the desire of the local community together to fight off the invaders is imbued with warlike determination and revolutionary zeal.
—Martin Dale, Variety, 17 May 2024
Ross fought off constant internal turmoil, sensing Tokyo as her best shot at a long-elusive gold medal after two previous stabs in the Olympics.
—Luca Evans, Orange County Register, 16 May 2024
In a surprise counteroffensive that fall, Ukrainian troops fought off the drive to the city, then pushed Russian forces out of the region, reclaiming a huge swath of land.
—Kim Barker, New York Times, 15 May 2024
The Gladiators fought off the Gators’ comeback attempt in the bottom half to preserve a 6-4 win.
—Jacob Steinberg, Baltimore Sun, 18 Apr. 2024
Advertisement But Pages fought off an inside cut fastball and fisted his fourth single of the night, his game-winner traveling all of 205 feet with an exit velocity of 63.4 mph but perfectly placed to spark a wild celebration with teammates in the infield.
—Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 4 May 2024
More than 100 students were slumped around the oak-and-marble lobby of Hamilton Hall, the main hub of Columbia College, fighting off sleep.
—Edmund Lee, New York Times, 3 May 2024
A couple years into her time at Cigna, Day noticed some doctors prescribing a costly treatment called intravenous immunoglobulin, or IVIG, that helps patients with weakened immune systems fight off infections.
—Patrick Rucker, ProPublica, 29 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fight off.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Fight off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fight%20off. Accessed 29 May. 2024.
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