head off

verb

headed off; heading off; heads off

transitive verb

: to turn back or turn aside : block, prevent

head them off at the pass

attempts to head off the imminent crisis

intransitive verb

: to go to another place

See you later—I'm heading off to work.

Synonyms of head off

• prevent
• avert

Examples of head off in a Sentence

if we act quickly, we may still be able to head off disaster

Recent Examples on the Web

The candidates in Kansas' surprisingly competitive Senate race faced off in a debate Wednesday evening, as Republicans fight to head off the possibility of their first loss in a Kansas Senate contest in nearly a century. — Riley Callanan, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026

Stern invited me to tour its offices and factory floor before heading off to the convention in nearby Schaumburg, Illinois. — ArsTechnica, 21 Oct. 2026

With his new Nebraska collegiate ball cap and now headed off to university, the sleeper agent has some vital decisions to make way beyond declaring a major. — Jeff Spry, Space.com, 17 Oct. 2026

At one point, the owner can be seen pointing in a different direction, then heads off to help another customer. — Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 14 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1825, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for head off

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