pass off
verb
passed off; passing off; passes off
1
: to make public or offer for sale with intent to deceive
2
: to give a false identity or character to
Examples of pass off in a Sentence
the con man tried to pass off a piece of blue glass as a sapphire
Recent Examples on the Web
Gimbel attributed the practice of AI washing to companies passing off diminished margins and revenue from a failure to effectively navigate cautious consumers and geopolitical tensions to AI.
—
Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 19 Feb. 2026
And even Lachlan, who shares his father’s paleo-conservative worldview and was therefore granted control of Fox News, ultimately had to accept that much of the Murdoch empire had been sold out from under him when Rupert passed off 20th Century Fox to Disney for $71 billion in 2019.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 18 Feb. 2026
That being said, Payton would often pass off specific situational duties to different areas of his offensive staff in New Orleans.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 7 Feb. 2026
During the sequence, Hinckle fed a pass off to his right.
—Brendan Connelly, Boston Herald, 31 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for pass off
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Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 19 Feb. 2026
And even Lachlan, who shares his father’s paleo-conservative worldview and was therefore granted control of Fox News, ultimately had to accept that much of the Murdoch empire had been sold out from under him when Rupert passed off 20th Century Fox to Disney for $71 billion in 2019.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 18 Feb. 2026
That being said, Payton would often pass off specific situational duties to different areas of his offensive staff in New Orleans.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 7 Feb. 2026
During the sequence, Hinckle fed a pass off to his right.
—Brendan Connelly, Boston Herald, 31 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for pass off
Cite this Entry
“Pass off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pass%20off. Accessed 20 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLegal Definition
pass off
transitive verb1
: to make public or offer for sale (goods or services) with intent to deceive : palm off
passing his product off as that of the plaintiff's—W. L. Prosser and W. P. Keeton
see also unfair competition
W. L. Prosser and W. P. Keeton2
: to give a false identity or character to
they created the documents on the day of the trial and passed them off as being made earlier
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