KNOCKING OFF Synonyms: 240 Similar and Opposite Words

knocking off

verb

present participle of knock off

as in stopping

to bring (as an action or operation) to an immediate end knock it off!

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in abandoning

to stop doing (something) permanently decided it was time to knock off telling fantastic fibs about her family background

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as in subtracting

to take away (an amount or number) from a total a proposal to knock 10 cents off the gasoline tax

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as in robbing

to remove valuables from (a place) unlawfully Bonnie and Clyde coped with the Great Depression by knocking off banks

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as in murdering

to put to death deliberately various assassins have tried to knock off the dictator over the years

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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 knocking off Following wins over Coastal Carolina (31-24) and UT Martin (52-7) to open, perhaps the Mountaineers will get some attention as a Big 12 title contender after knocking off previously unbeaten Virginia. — ABC News, 19 Sep. 2026 The Colts were just one touchdown drive away from knocking off the Texans in the regular-season finale and securing a postseason berth, but an errant pass from Minshew on fourth-and-1 spelled the end of their season. — James Boyd, New York Times, 10 Sep. 2026 Corona del Mar has the favorite’s role after knocking off Edison last week. — Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 7 Sep. 2026 Season 3 wrapped in April 2025, knocking off multiple fan-favorite characters and some big-name guest players. — Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 20 Aug. 2026 Additionally, Tama Tonga and Talla Tonga won the WWE Tag Team Championship in a triple-threat match, knocking off Damian Priest and R-Truth as the title-holders and keeping Erik and Ivar from adding more gold around their waists. — Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 17 Aug. 2026 Other contenders on the stage gave far better answers, but Jackson is the one who is on the cusp of becoming the Democratic nominee in Maine, where the party has its most realistic shot at knocking off an incumbent Republican Senator. — Philip Elliott, Time, 23 July 2026 But if Bellingham leads the Three Lions to immortality, knocking off the reigning champ in the process, Icons certainly won’t be complaining. — Justin Birnbaum, Sportico.com, 15 July 2026 The same energy that helped elect Zohran Mamdani has fueled a string of insurgent victories, knocking off longtime officeholders and helping progress challengers break through in New York and Colorado. — Dana Taylor, USA Today, 14 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for knocking off

Verb

But Hurts threw incomplete on first down, wasting only four seconds and stopping the clock.

— ABC News, ABC News, 12 Oct. 2026
The crackdown extended beyond the protest venue, with police stopping buses, cars and other vehicles at checkpoints on routes into the capital and searching for demonstrators.

— Sheikh Saaliq, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of stopping

Verb

And in Steinbeck’s original telling, Cathy — the most beloved patricidal, baby-abandoning prostitute in literature — is simply born that way.

— Jasmine Vojdani, Vulture, 10 Oct. 2026
That approach could help the Army strengthen its missile defenses without abandoning the technology and infrastructure already supporting its air defense operations.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of abandoning

Verb

Because time is finite, adding one thing means subtracting another.

— Melody Wilding, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2026
Back in the early spring, the idea of subtracting a durable 33-game starter (and a former second-round pick) from a defensive line that seemed to be an area of major concern for the Bears would have been unthinkable.

— Dan Wiederer, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of subtracting

Verb

Around the same time, legacy media began its slow decline, robbing magazines and TV shows of much of their PR powers.

— Brian Raftery, Vanity Fair, 6 Oct. 2026
He is accused of robbing and killing Anna Yagi, 39, who was found at a hotel in Naha on Saturday morning.

— Javier C. Hernández, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2026

Definition of robbing

Verb

Caleb Flynn, the former American Idol contestant who was found guilty of murdering his wife, Ashley Flynn, has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

— Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 5 Oct. 2026
The former American Idol contestant and church worship leader convicted of murdering his wife and staging the scene to look like a burglary was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Monday.

— Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of murdering

Verb

The Justice Department has sued California and other states over their trans-inclusive sports policies, and successfully threatened large hospitals into ending gender-affirming care programs.

— Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2026
All the Washington Commanders needed to do was spike the ball and kick a game-ending field goal in overtime.

— Jake Kauderer, Washington Post, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of ending

Verb

Kerr graduated from high school in Reno and played baseball at Mendocino College in Northern California for two years before quitting the sport.

— ABC News, ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026
After his first game, a 13-4 thrashing in the Swansea Senior League, Wright considered quitting.

— Eduardo Tansley, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2026

Definition of quitting

Verb

That’s after excluding wealth from the top 1% of households, subtracting debts and other liabilities, and deducting retirement spending, charitable donations, taxes, and fees.

— Jason Ma, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2026
AskAnyModel also supports unlimited image generation across compatible models without deducting premium credits.

— StackCommerce Team, PC Magazine, 17 Aug. 2026