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\ ˈȯf 
\
\Definition of off
(Entry 1 of 6)
1a(1) : from a place or position
march off specifically : away from land ship stood off to sea
(2) : at a distance in space or time
stood 10 paces off a long way off
b : from a course : aside turned off into a bypath specifically : away from the wind The ship eased off a point or two.
c : into an unconscious state
dozed off
2a : so as to be separated from support
rolled to the edge of the table and off or close contact
blew the lid off the handle came off
b : so as to be divided
surface marked off into squares
3a : to a state of discontinuance or suspension
shut off an engine
b —used as an intensifierdrink off a glassfinish it off
4 : in absence from or suspension of regular work or service
take time off for lunch
5 : offstage The actor turns and goes off.
off
prepositionDefinition of off (Entry 2 of 6)
1a —used as a function word to indicate physical separation or distance from a position of rest, attachment, or uniontake it off the tablea path off the main walka shop just off the main street
b : to seaward of
two miles off shore
2 : from the possession or charge of
had his wallet stolen off him
3 —used as a function word to indicate the object of an actionborrowed a dollar off himdined off oysters
4a —used as a function word to indicate the suspension of an occupation or activityoff dutyoff liquor
b : below the usual standard or level of
off his game
off
adjectiveDefinition of off (Entry 3 of 6)
2a : started on the way
off on a spree
b : not taking place or staying in effect : canceled the deal was off
c : not operating
d : not placed so as to permit operation
4a : spent off duty
reading on his off days
b : marked by a periodic decline in activity or business
traveled in the off season for lower prices
5a : off-color
b : inferior off grade of oil also : affected with putrefaction
c : down stocks were off
6 : circumstanced worse off
off
verboffed; offing; offs
Definition of off (Entry 4 of 6)
: to go away : depart —used chiefly as an imperativeOff, or I'll shoot!
off
abbreviationDefinition of off (Entry 5 of 6)
office; officer; official
-off
noun combining form\ ˌȯf \
Definition of -off (Entry 6 of 6)
: competition : contest
bake-off
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Synonyms & Antonyms for off
Synonyms: Adverb
Synonyms: Adjective
- bad,
- bastard,
- bush,
- bush-league,
- crummy
- (also crumby),
- deficient,
- dissatisfactory,
- ill,
- inferior,
- lame,
- lousy,
- paltry,
- poor,
- punk,
- sour,
- suboptimal,
- subpar,
- substandard,
- unacceptable,
- unsatisfactory,
- wack
- [slang],
- wanting,
- wretched,
- wrong
Synonyms: Verb
- assassinate,
- bump off,
- croak
- [slang],
- dispatch,
- do in,
- execute,
- get,
- ice
- [slang],
- knock off,
- liquidate,
- murder,
- neutralize,
- put away,
- rub out,
- slay,
- snuff,
- take out,
- terminate,
- whack
- [slang]
Antonyms: Adjective
- acceptable,
- adequate,
- all right,
- decent,
- fine,
- OK
- (or okay),
- passable,
- respectable,
- satisfactory,
- standard,
- tolerable
Examples of off in a Sentence
Adverb
She put on her jacket and off she went.
The car turned off onto a side street. Preposition
She is still living off her parents.
The family lives off welfare.
They live off the land.
They make their living off tourism. Adjective
The lever is in the off position.
He is off playing golf.
She is off on a trip. Verb
The movie is about a gangster who gets power by offing his rivals.
the hit man bragged that he'd offed at least three people in the last year alone
See More
Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb Then cap the night off back in Midtown with seasonal craft cocktails at the wonderfully dark, moody, and very delicious Death and Taxes.
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Heather Platt, Los Angeles Magazine, "Reno: It’s Not Just The Place You Ignore While Skiing in Tahoe Anymore," 28 Aug. 2017 Even coming off the biggest win of his career—the Cincy title—
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SI.com, "2017 U.S. Open Men's Seed Reports," 26 Aug. 2017 Family and friends filled a hangar at the Illinois Army National Guard's Peoria aviation facility to send off 40 soldiers, including Specialist Dylan Ingersoll of Batavia, who are slated to spend the next several months in Afghanistan.
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Andy Kravetz, Aurora Beacon-News, "National Guard unit ready for stint in Afghanistan," 25 Aug. 2017 The combination of Tannehill not being all that great and replacement Jay Cutler being good enough means Miami has not fallen off much at the most important position.
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Greg Cote, miamiherald, "Dolphins’ Double-J offense will be enough to overcome shortcomings on D," 25 Aug. 2017 First off, Squidward is a total Krusty Krab traitor and Plankton actually looks like a villain.
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Stacey Grant, Seventeen, "This "SpongeBob SquarePants" Anime Opening Is Low-Key Nightmare Fuel," 24 Aug. 2017 Headaches are pretty awful at any time, but getting one in the A.M. is a sure-fire way to get your day off to crappy start.
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Korin Miller, SELF, "6 Causes of Morning Headaches," 24 Aug. 2017 A flight dispatcher’s job isn’t done when the plane takes off.
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Allison Hope, CNT, "This Person Is More in Control of Your Flight Than the Pilot," 24 Aug. 2017 If Elsevier cuts off access again, German researchers who want to read articles from Elsevier journals, among them Cell, The Lancet, and Physics Reports, will have to resort to measures such as interlibrary loans—or go to pirate sites like SciHub.
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Gretchen Vogel, Science | AAAS, "A bold open-access push in Germany could change the future of academic publishing," 23 Aug. 2017 Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective The incident occurred on Monday afternoon at approximately 3:30 p.m. in Houston, Texas when an off-duty police officer caught a strange sight on W. Sam Houston Parkway Beltway, according to ABC News' Houston station KTRK.
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Jon Haworth, ABC News, "5 kids caught in stolen truck lead police on short chase, crash into 2 other cars," 11 Feb. 2020 Bledsoe chipped in 16 points and seven assists, still affecting the game with his speed and aggression despite an off shooting night (7 of 20).
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Matt Velazquez, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Bucks 120, Pelicans 108: The first Giannis-Zion clash goes in the veteran's favor," 4 Feb. 2020 The suspect was identified as 51-year-old Lisa McMullan, who authorities say knew the victims, two of whom are retired Illinois state troopers and one of whom was an off-duty trooper.
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Zachary Halaschak, Washington Examiner, "'Heavy hearts': One trooper dead and two wounded after woman opens fire in cigar lounge," 25 Jan. 2020 The officer was working an off-duty detail at the time.
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Jennifer Edwards Baker, Cincinnati.com, "2 Cincinnati police cruisers struck on highways," 24 Jan. 2020 With Winston having an off night, Brown was one of four MSU players to score in double figures.
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Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press, "No. 9 Michigan State basketball at Indiana: Scouting report, prediction," 22 Jan. 2020 But Clemson had an off night against a team that was more memorable and dynamic to me than any of the national champions in recent memory.
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oregonlive, "Canzano: It’s steep climb for Oregon Ducks -- or anyone in the Pac-12 -- to a national title," 14 Jan. 2020 LeBron James, on an off night in his first season back with the Cavs, was impressed.
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Scott Patsko, cleveland, "Odell Beckham Jr.’s catch, the defining moment of his career, was five years ago today," 23 Nov. 2019 Andersen seeks to rebound after having an off night against the New York Islanders Wednesday, giving up four goals on 29 shots.
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Chris Wassel, USA TODAY Sportsbook Wire, "Bruins-Maple Leafs odds: Division rivals meet in Toronto," 15 Nov. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Brabham is a gentle man who hardly seems capable of splatting a spider, much less offing a rodent.
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Andrea Sachs, chicagotribune.com, "‘These are working cats’: Meet the feral felines tasked with hunting rodents," 5 Nov. 2019 Brabham is a gentle man who hardly seems capable of splatting a spider, much less offing a rodent.
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Andrea Sachs, chicagotribune.com, "‘These are working cats’: Meet the feral felines tasked with hunting rodents," 5 Nov. 2019 Brabham is a gentle man who hardly seems capable of splatting a spider, much less offing a rodent.
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Andrea Sachs, chicagotribune.com, "‘These are working cats’: Meet the feral felines tasked with hunting rodents," 5 Nov. 2019 Brabham is a gentle man who hardly seems capable of splatting a spider, much less offing a rodent.
—
Andrea Sachs, chicagotribune.com, "‘These are working cats’: Meet the feral felines tasked with hunting rodents," 5 Nov. 2019 Brabham is a gentle man who hardly seems capable of splatting a spider, much less offing a rodent.
—
Andrea Sachs, chicagotribune.com, "‘These are working cats’: Meet the feral felines tasked with hunting rodents," 5 Nov. 2019 Brabham is a gentle man who hardly seems capable of splatting a spider, much less offing a rodent.
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Andrea Sachs, Washington Post, "‘These are working cats’: Meet the feral D.C. felines tasked with hunting rodents," 4 Nov. 2019 After offing one of the Toretto family’s loved ones and parachuting away from her airbase in The Fate of the Furious, Cipher will be back to again face off against Dom and company in Fast & Furious 9.
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Marcus Jones, EW.com, "Charlize Theron ditches the dreads for Cipher's return in Fast & Furious 9," 2 Sep. 2019 Can someone go from on the team to off the team in five practices and two games?
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Scott Patsko, cleveland.com, "What we know about the Browns offensive line entering the third preseason game," 23 Aug. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'off.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for off
off
adverbEnglish Language Learners Definition of off
(Entry 1 of 4)
: away from a place
: away from a main road, path, etc.
: at a distance in time or space
off
prepositionEnglish Language Learners Definition of off (Entry 2 of 4)
—used to indicate separation, distance, or removal from someone or something
: on money, food, energy, etc., supplied by (someone or something)
—used to indicate something that someone is no longer doing or using
off
adjectiveEnglish Language Learners Definition of off (Entry 3 of 4)
: not attached to or covering something : not on
: not operating, functioning, or flowing
: in a position that stops the flow of electricity, water, etc.
off
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of off (Entry 4 of 4)
US slang : to kill or murder (someone)
See the full definition for off in the English Language Learners Dictionary
off
adverb\ ˈȯf \
\Kids Definition of off
(Entry 1 of 4)
1 : from a place or position
He got angry and marched off.
2 : from a course : aside The driver turned off onto a side street.
3 : so as not to be supported, covering or enclosing, or attached
I jumped off. The lid blew off. The handle fell off.
4 : so as to be discontinued or finished
Turn the radio off. The couple paid off their debts.
5 : away from work
I took the day off.
off
prepositionKids Definition of off (Entry 2 of 4)
1 : away from the surface or top of
Take those books off the table.
2 : at the expense of
I lived off my parents.
3 : released or freed from
The officer was off duty.
4 : below the usual level of
We can save a dollar off the price.
5 : away from
The hotel is just off the highway.
off
adjectiveKids Definition of off (Entry 3 of 4)
1 : not operating or flowing
The radio is off. The electricity is off.
2 : not attached to or covering
The lid is off.
3 : started on the way
They're off on a trip.
4 : not taking place
The game is off.
5 : not correct : wrong Your guess is way off.
6 : not as good as usual
He's having an off day.
7 : provided for
His family is well off.
8 : small in degree : slight There's an off chance I'll win.
9 : away from home or work
He's off fishing.
off.
abbreviationKids Definition of off.
office
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Time Traveler for off
The first known use of off was before the 12th century
See more words from the same century