start off

verb

started off; starting off; starts off

1

: to start or cause (something) to start in a specified way

He started off by introducing himself.

She started off (her run) at a slow jog.

The performance started off badly.

—often + with

I started off my speech with a joke.

We started off the meal with shrimp cocktails.

The team started the season off with a 10-game winning streak.

2

: to have a specified quality, identity, job, etc., at the start

She started off as a sales assistant but is now the marketing director.

3

: to begin an important period in one's life or career

The house is perfect for a couple just starting off.

4

: to begin to move toward a particular place or in a particular direction

She ate breakfast before starting off for work.

5

: to cause (someone) to begin doing a particular activity or action

He started his daughter off on the piano.

The game-show host started her off with some easy questions.

Examples of start off in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Temperatures will start off in the upper 30s to mid-40s, but as the day goes on, any morning cloud cover will give way to mostly sunny skies by the afternoon, helping temperatures warm back into the mid-60s. — Grant Gilmore, CBS News, 10 Nov. 2026

Gunn and Safran started off with the successful launch of a new Superman movie last year but then stumbled big with Supergirl, a critical and commercial bomb. — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 9 Nov. 2026

Their coffee business started off with a pushcart and 100 pounds of coffee beans back in 1992, with the brothers slinging espresso by the railroad tracks of Grants Pass, Oregon. — Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 8 Nov. 2026

UConn started off slowly, with Iowa building an 11-5 lead early in the first quarter. — Lori Riley, Hartford Courant, 8 Nov. 2026

Rhymes for start off

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