From WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003) [wn]:
off
adj 1: not in operation or operational; "the oven is off"; "the
lights are off" [ant: on]
2: below a satisfactory level; "an off year for tennis"; "his
performance was off"
3: (of events) no longer planned or scheduled; "the wedding is
definitely off" [syn: cancelled] [ant: on]
4: in an unpalatable state; "sour milk" [syn: sour, turned]
5: not performing or scheduled for duties; "He's off every
Tuesday"; "he was off duty when it happened"; "an off-duty
policeman" [syn: {off(p)}, {off duty(p)}, {off-duty(a)}]
adv 1: from a particular thing or place or position (`forth' is
obsolete); "ran away from the lion"; "wanted to get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" [syn: away, forth]
2: 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" [syn: away]
3: no longer on or in contact or attached; "clean off the
dirt"; "he shaved off his mustache"
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Off \Off\ ([o^]f; 115), adv. [OE. of, orig. the same word as R.
of, prep., AS. of, adv. & prep. [root]194. See Of.]
In a general sense, denoting from or away from; as:
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1. Denoting distance or separation; as, the house is a mile
off.
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2. Denoting the action of removing or separating; separation;
as, to take off the hat or cloak; to cut off, to pare off,
to clip off, to peel off, to tear off, to march off, to
fly off, and the like.
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3. Denoting a leaving, abandonment, departure, abatement,
interruption, or remission; as, the fever goes off; the
pain goes off; the game is off; all bets are off.
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4. Denoting a different direction; not on or towards: away;
as, to look off.
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5. Denoting opposition or negation. [Obs.]
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The questions no way touch upon puritanism, either
off or on. --Bp.
Sanderson.
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From off, off from; off. "A live coal . . . taken with the
tongs from off the altar." --Is. vi. 6.
Off and on.
(a) Not constantly; not regularly; now and then;
occasionally.
(b) (Naut.) On different tacks, now toward, and now away
from, the land.
To be off.
(a) To depart; to escape; as, he was off without a
moment's warning.
(b) To be abandoned, as an agreement or purpose; as, the
bet was declared to be off. [Colloq.]
To come off, To cut off, To fall off, To go off, etc.
See under Come, Cut, Fall, Go, etc.
To get off.
(a) To utter; to discharge; as, to get off a joke.
(b) To go away; to escape; as, to get off easily from a
trial. [Colloq.]
To take off To do a take-off on, To take off, to mimic,
lampoon, or impersonate.
To tell off
(a) (Mil.), to divide and practice a regiment or company
in the several formations, preparatory to marching to
the general parade for field exercises. --Farrow.
(b) to rebuke (a person) for an improper action; to scold;
to reprimand.
To be well off, to be in good condition.
To be ill off, To be badly off, to be in poor condition.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Off \Off\, n. (Cricket)
The side of the field that is on the right of the wicket
keeper.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Off \Off\ ([o^]f; 115), interj.
Away; begone; -- a command to depart.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Off \Off\, prep.
Not on; away from; as, to be off one's legs or off the bed;
two miles off the shore. --Addison.
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Off hand. See Offhand.
Off side
(Football), out of play; -- said when a player has got in
front of the ball in a scrimmage, or when the ball
has been last touched by one of his own side
behind him.
To be off color,
(a) to be of a wrong color.
(b) to be mildly obscene.
To be off one's food or To be off one's feed, (Colloq.)
to have no appetite; to be eating less than usual.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Off \Off\, a.
1. On the farther side; most distant; on the side of an
animal or a team farthest from the driver when he is on
foot; in the United States, the right side; as, the off
horse or ox in a team, in distinction from the nigh or
near horse or ox; the off leg.
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2. Designating a time when one is not strictly attentive to
business or affairs, or is absent from his post, and,
hence, a time when affairs are not urgent; as, he took an
off day for fishing: an off year in politics. "In the off
season." --Thackeray.
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3. Designating a time when one's performance is below normal;
as, he had an off day.
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Off side.
(a) The right hand side in driving; the farther side. See
Gee.
(b) (Cricket) See Off, n.
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