close off

phrasal verb

closed off; closing off; closes off

: to not allow (something) to be used for a period of time : close

The city closed off the beach to tourists.

Half of the museum was closed off while they made the changes.

—sometimes used figuratively

He closes himself off to new experiences.

Examples of close off in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

As people fled, government forces closed off the main exits of the market toward the street and directly shot at people trying to flee the flames, Saman said. —Somayeh Malekian, ABC News, 27 Jan. 2026

After the deadly attacks and the Senate chamber breach, officials closed off some of the entrances to the Capitol building. —Aki Nace, CBS News, 26 Jan. 2026

Should your home lose power, weather and safety experts recommend shutting blinds and curtains, closing off rooms and blocking the cracks under doors with towels to retain heat. —Lauren Caruba, Dallas Morning News, 23 Jan. 2026

Liverpool’s midfielders then close off the space and Saka cuts in to have a tame shot at goal. —Mark Carey, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2026

Rhymes for close off

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