Off
WordNet
adjective
(1) Not performing or scheduled for duties
"He's off every Tuesday"
(2) Not in operation or operational
"The oven is off"
"The lights are off"
(3) (of events) no longer planned or scheduled
"The wedding is definitely off"
(4) Below a satisfactory level
"An off year for tennis"
"His performance was off"
(5) In an unpalatable state
"Sour milk"
adverb
(6) No longer on or in contact or attached
"Clean off the dirt"
"He shaved off his mustache"
(7) From a particular thing or place or position (`forth' is obsolete)
"Ran away from the lion"
"Wanted to get away from there"
"Sent the children away to boarding school"
"The teacher waved the children away from the dead animal"
"Went off to school"
"They drove off"
"Go forth and preach"
(8) At a distance in space or time
"The boat was 5 miles off (or away)"
"The party is still 2 weeks off (or away)"
"Away back in the 18th century"
verb
(9) Kill intentionally and with premeditation
"The mafia boss ordered his enemies murdered"
WiktionaryText
Adverb
off
- In a direction away from the speaker or object.
- He drove off in a cloud of smoke.
- The book fell off the table.
- Into a state of non-operation; into a state of non-existence.
- Please switch off the light when you leave.
- die off
Usage notes
- Used in many phrasal verbs, off is an adverbial particle often mistakenly thought of as a preposition. (It can be used as a preposition, but such usage is still rare and always informal; see below.)
Adjective
off
- inoperative, disabled
- All the lights are off.
- rotten
- This milk is off!
- in, or towards the half of the field away from the batsman's legs; the right side for a right-handed batsman
Preposition
- from
- I took it off the table.; Come off the roof!
- Away from or not on.
- He's off the computer, but he's still on the phone.; Keep off the grass.
- Disconnected or subtracted from.
- We've been off the grid for three days now.; He took 20% off the list price.
- Distant from.
- We're just off the main road.; The island is 23 miles off the cape.
- No longer wanting or taking
- He's been off his feed since Tuesday.; He's off his meds again.
- times
- Tantalum bar 6 off 3/8" Dia × 12" — Atom, Great Britain Atomic Energy Authority, 1972
- samples submitted … 12 off Thermistors type 1K3A531 … — BSI test report for shock and vibration testing, 2000