tick off

verb

ticked off; ticking off; ticks off

transitive verb

1

: to make angry or indignant

the cancellation really ticked me off

2

: reprimand, rebuke

his father ticked him off for his impudence

Synonyms of tick off

• admonish
• reprimand
• get after
• blame
• scold
• get on
• criticize

Examples of tick off in a Sentence

she royally ticked the babysitter off for letting the child play outside unsupervised

it really ticks me off when someone says something like that

Recent Examples on the Web

Andy Kotelnicki would love to reenact one of the greatest moments in sports history after the final seconds tick off the clock in the Kansas-Arizona State football game Saturday at tradition-rich Wembley Stadium in London, England. — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 16 Sep. 2026

But American Sepp Kuss is days away from ticking off a second Grand Tour treble, three years after his first. — Chris Marshall-Bell, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026

The final seconds of the first half ticked off as the Spartans took a 10-7 lead on a 45-yard field goal from kicker Trajan Sinatra. — Niles Hall, Mercury News, 5 Sep. 2026

Paper menus allow diners to tick off orders of lip-tingling laab, luscious khao soi, and juicy pomelo salad, feeling like a never-ending invitation to add just one more course. — The Bon Appétit Staff, Bon Appetit Magazine, 24 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

tick entry 2

First Known Use

1915, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for tick off

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