CALLED OFF Synonyms: 63 Similar and Opposite Words

called off

verb

past tense of call off

as in distracted

to draw the attention or mind to something else she was about to tell me the big news when her attention was called off by the arrival of another guest

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in canceled

to put an end to (something planned or previously agreed to) called off the party after half of those invited couldn't make it

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of called off The following year, it was called off due to rainfall, and in 2025, Bonnaroo had a strong start on its first day before organizers ultimately canceled the rest of the festival due to weather. — Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 21 Aug. 2026 The mission to save NASA's sinking Swift Observatory was called off Wednesday, dooming the telescope to a fiery reentry later this year. — CBS News, 19 Aug. 2026 The tour previously called off a June tourney in New Orleans. — Kurt Badenhausen, Sportico.com, 17 Aug. 2026 The White House called off attacks against Iran due to concerns about troop defense given the depletion of interceptor stocks, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal reported. — Anna Mulrine Grobe, Christian Science Monitor, 17 Aug. 2026 The couple called off their engagement in 2018, and Mozzi and Beatrice started dating that same year. — Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 14 Aug. 2026 Tennessee called off Carruthers' execution after a doctor failed to insert a backup intravenous line for about two hours, prompting Lee to grant Carruthers a one-year reprieve. — Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 13 Aug. 2026 Walter put a take-it-or-leave-it bid on the table so high — hundreds of millions above where the other bidders had been in the process — that former Dodgers owner Frank McCourt called off the auction and congratulated Walter. — Bill Shaikin, Los Angeles Times, 12 Aug. 2026 The longtime couple called off their engagement almost two years ago, according to Leigh Ann Caldwell, chief Washington correspondent at Puck. — Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 12 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for called off

Verb

Kiser’s husband, Brady Kiser, said he had been briefly distracted while watching Trigg while his wife was away.

— Shayna Jacobs, NBC news, 15 Aug. 2026
Debbie intervenes to defuse the tension, then gets distracted by the presence of her nemesis, Cha Cha.

— Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of distracted

Verb

The franchise was canceled after a 2006 Texas operation in which Rockwall County assistant district attorney Louis Conradt died by suicide as authorities and the show’s crew closed in on his home.

— Clayton Davis, Variety, 21 Aug. 2026
The 2020 and 2021 editions were canceled amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and the 2025 festival was canceled after a day due to a storm.

— Ethan Millman, HollywoodReporter, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of canceled

Verb

With that said, Jonas Vingegaard’s crash at this year’s Tour shows how quickly races can change — while the two favorites at last year’s Giro d’Italia, Roglič and Juan Ayuso, both abandoned with injuries.

— Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026
In the present-day timeline, this reveal casts a large shadow over adult Shauna (Melanie Lynskey), who’s abandoned by husband Jeff (Warren Cole) and daughter Callie (Sarah Desjardins).

— Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of abandoned

Verb

The race was supposed to be held every year for the next 10 years, but the 2003 event was scrapped after organizers failed to fix the noise problems and ran into other operational issues.

— Stefan Becket, CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026
The move meant performances from Don Toliver, Tems, Sombr, and Clairo were scrapped, but new additions to the lineup included Kali Uchis, Blood Orange, Geese, and Fakemink.

— Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of scrapped

Verb

Bond was revoked after the court proceedings on Tuesday, and he was remanded to the Oakland County Jail.

— Paula Wethington, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026
Following the display, Budnik's official recognition was revoked and organizers sought the return of his physical gold medal, according to reports.

— Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of revoked

Verb

Infantino has come under increasing pressure to step down over his plan, now aborted, to sell stakes in soccer’s biggest tournament, the World Cup, to private equity investors.

— ABC News, ABC News, 23 Aug. 2026
The company aborted a Thursday attempt after running the countdown clock to under 30 seconds.

— Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of aborted

Verb

If the rule is repealed as proposed, those prohibitions will go away.

— Dan Peck, ABC News, 20 Aug. 2026
However, the laws were ultimately repealed after being met with massive agitations from farmers and farmer unions, especially from Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 18 Aug. 2026