pickoff

1 of 2

noun

pick·​off ˈpik-ˌȯf 

: a baseball play in which a base runner is picked off

pick off

2 of 2

verb

picked off; picking off; picks off

transitive verb

1

: to shoot or bring down especially one by one

2

: to put out (a base runner who is off base) with a quick throw (as from the pitcher or catcher)

3

: intercept

picked off a pass

Synonyms of pickoff

Verb

• intercept
• grab
• block

Examples of pickoff in a Sentence

Noun

He made a pickoff throw to third base.

Verb

picked off more passes than any other player in the division

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Red Sox scored four in the third inning but San Diego got three in the top of the fourth after Machado kicked away a pickoff attempt — perhaps not unintentionally — to put runners on second and third. —ABC News, 5 Apr. 2026

Machado helped the Padres to a three-run fourth inning with an RBI single and by taking a pickoff attempt off his foot. —Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2026

Verb

Inspect your plants frequently and pick off caterpillars, dunking them in a bucket of soapy water. —Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 11 Apr. 2026

The most dramatic came in the first period, when Jimmy Snuggerud picked off DeMelo’s stretch pass and started an aggressive Blues counterattack. —Murat Ates, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1911, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1810, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for pickoff

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

Kids Definition

pick off

verb

1

: to shoot or bring down one by one or with a single shot

2

: to put out (a base runner who is off base) with a quick throw