buy off

verb

bought off; buying off; buys off

transitive verb

1

: to induce to refrain (as from prosecution) by a payment or other consideration

2

: to free (as from military service) by payment

Examples of buy off in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Requirements are the key element of a NASA planning document like this, the bureaucratic currency by which NASA buys off on the safety of a spacecraft, such as the amount of habitable volume the agency requires. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 10 July 2026

My most recent purchase is a Cleveland 7w with 23-degree loft that was a great buy off eBay. — Joe Kinsey Outkick, FOXNews.com, 6 July 2026

This is the sharper version of the cynical read, that the companies are buying off the regulators. — Jon Markman, Forbes.com, 27 June 2026

Once the new designs are approved (sometime this year, if all goes well), the DoB plans to publish the specs so that any contractor can download the design, buy off-the-shelf elements, tailor the structure to the site, and get a scheme approved in a matter of hours. — Justin Davidson, Curbed, 24 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1614, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for buy off

• ashraf
• checkoff
• cutoff
• falloff
• handoff
• kickoff
• layoff
• liftoff
• markoff
• markov
• payoff
• playoff