off

off¹ W1S1 [ɔf US o:f] adv, prep, adj

1.) away from a place

▪ He got into his car and drove off.

▪ Suddenly they turned off and parked in a side road.

▪ Once we were off the main freeway, the trip felt more like a vacation.

▪ Her husband was off on a business trip somewhere.

▪ Are you ready? Off we go.

▪ I must be off now (=I must leave) .

▪ They were off to Italy (=leaving to go to Italy) and wanted to make an early start.

2.) not on something, or removed from something

▪ Keep off the grass.

▪ As he leaned forward, his hat fell off.

▪ Someone had taken the mirror off the wall.

▪ Take your coat off.

▪ I was trying to scrape the mud off my boots.

3.) out of a bus, train, plane etc

≠ ↑on

▪ I'll get off at the next stop.

▪ Everyone got off the train at Winnipeg.

4.) a machine, piece of equipment etc that is off is not working or operating

≠ ↑on

▪ Will someone switch the radio off?

▪ Make sure all the lights are off.

5.) not at work, school etc because you are ill or on holiday

→↑absent

▪ My secretary's been off with flu for the past week.

▪ Clare had to stay off school because her mother was ill.

▪ You look tired. Why don't you take tomorrow off?

▪ He needs more time off duty for relaxation and rest.

▪ 'Going to work today, mum?' 'No. It 's my day off today.'

6.) informal from someone

▪ My brother once borrowed some money off him.

▪ I got this necklace off a woman outside the market.

7.)

a) used to say how far away something is

▪ We could see the cliffs of Shetland about two miles off.

▪ Kara's home was a long way off across the sea.

b) used to say how much time there is between now and a future event

▪ With the exams now only a week off, I had to study hard.

▪ Christmas seemed a long way off.

c) used to say how likely or unlikely something is

▪ Any kind of peace agreement still seems a long way off.

8.)

a) only a short distance away from a place

▪ Our hotel was just off the main street.

▪ an island off the coast of France

b) connected to a particular room, area, road etc

▪ There's a small bathroom off the main bedroom.

▪ a narrow street leading off the corner of the square

9.) used to say that a price is reduced by a particular amount

▪ If you buy more than ten, they knock 10% off.

10.)if an event which has been arranged is off, it will not now take place

→↑cancelled, postponed ↑postponed

▪ The wedding's off.

▪ The race may have to be called off if the bad weather continues.

11.) BrE informal behaviour that is off is rude or is not acceptable

▪ She walked out before the end of your lecture, which I thought was a bit off.

▪ Look, I know when someone's being off with me.

12.) used to say how much of something someone has

be well/badly off for sth

▪ The school's fairly well off for books these days.

▪ How are you off for sports equipment? (=do you have enough?)

→↑well-off, ↑badly off, ↑better off

13.) off and on also on and off

for short periods but not regularly, over a long period of time

▪ We've been going out together for five years, off and on.

14.) no longer wanting or liking something

▪ Toby's been off his food for a few days.

go off sth/sb BrE

▪ I used to enjoy tennis, but I've gone off it a bit now.

▪ She seems to have gone off Mark since he's grown a beard.

15.) no longer taking something such as a drug or medicine

≠ ↑on

▪ The operation was a success, and she's off the morphine.

16.)

a) food that is off is no longer fresh enough to eat

→↑rotten, sour ↑sour

▪ Ugh! The milk's off.

▪ Do you think the meat's gone off ?

b) used to say that a particular kind of food is not available in a restaurant although it is on the ↑menu

▪ I'm sorry, the fish pie is off today, sir.

17.) AmE not as good as usual

▪ Sales figures for last year were a little off compared with those of the previous year.

18.) AmE not correct or not right

▪ Our calculations were off.

▪ Guess again. You're way off (=very far from being correct) .

→right off, at ↑right³ (2), straight off, at ↑straight¹ (7), off the top of your head, at ↑top¹ (18), noises off at ↑noise¹ (8)

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HINT sense 2

Do not say 'off of' something. Say off something: Get off the bus at the airport (NOT Get off of the bus at the airport).

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off ²

off² adj [only before noun]

1.) off day/week etc

a day, week etc when you are not doing something as well as you usually do

▪ Brian never usually loses his temper - he must be having an off day .

2.) off period/season etc

a period or season which is not as busy as other times of the year

▪ In the off season, there's hardly anyone staying at the hotel.

3.) BrE used to talk about a pair of things such as wheels on a car, to mean the one on the right

≠ ↑near

off ³

off³ n BrE

1.) the off

the start of a race or a journey

▪ The horses were in line, ready for the off.

2.) from the off

from the beginning of something

▪ She was doubtful about the interview from the off.

off ⁴

off⁴ v [T] AmE informal

to kill someone

▪ The guy who did this ought to be offed.