brush-off
- a refusal to talk or listen to someone; abrupt or final dismissal or rebuff.
Origin of brush-off
brush1
- an implement consisting of bristles, hair, or the like, set in or attached to a handle, used for painting, cleaning, polishing, grooming, etc.
- one of a pair of devices consisting of long, thin handles with wire bristles attached, used in jazz or dance bands for keeping a soft, rhythmic beat on the trap drums or the cymbals.
- the bushy tail of an animal, especially of a fox.
- Electricity.
- a conductor, often made of carbon or copper or a combination of the two, serving to maintain electric contact between stationary and moving parts of a machine, generator, or other apparatus.
- brush discharge.
- a feathery or hairy tuft or tassel, as on the tip of a kernel of grain or on a man's hat.
- an act or instance of brushing; application of a brush.
- a light, stroking touch.
- a brief encounter: He has already had one brush with the law.
- a close approach, especially to something undesirable or harmful: a brush with disaster.
- to sweep, paint, clean, polish, etc., with a brush.
- to touch lightly in passing; pass lightly over: His lips brushed her ear.
- to remove by brushing or by lightly passing over: His hand brushed a speck of lint from his coat.
- to move or skim with a slight contact.
- brush aside, to disregard; ignore: Our complaints were simply brushed aside.
- brush off, to rebuff; send away: She had never been brushed off so rudely before.
- brush up on, to revive, review, or resume (studies, a skill, etc.): She's thinking of brushing up on her tennis.Also brush up.
- get the brush, to be rejected or rebuffed: She greeted Jim effusively, but I got the brush.
- give the brush, to ignore, rebuff, etc.: If you're still angry with him, give him the brush.
Origin of brush1
Synonyms
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comRelated Words
boycottcontradictcutdenydisclaimdismissdisowndisregardostracizeoverriderebuffrefuserejectrepudiatescornslightsnubspurncold-shoulderbrush off
- to dismiss and ignore (a person), esp curtly
- an abrupt dismissal or rejection
brush1
- a device made of bristles, hairs, wires, etc, set into a firm back or handle: used to apply paint, clean or polish surfaces, groom the hair, etc
- the act or an instance of brushing
- a light stroke made in passing; graze
- a brief encounter or contact, esp an unfriendly one; skirmish
- the bushy tail of a fox, often kept as a trophy after a hunt, or of certain breeds of dog
- an electric conductor, esp one made of carbon, that conveys current between stationary and rotating parts of a generator, motor, etc
- a dark brush-shaped region observed when a biaxial crystal is viewed through a microscope, caused by interference between beams of polarized light
- (tr) to clean, polish, scrub, paint, etc, with a brush
- (tr) to apply or remove with a brush or brushing movementbrush the crumbs off the table
- (tr) to touch lightly and briefly
- (intr) to move so as to graze or touch something lightly
Word Origin
brush2
- a thick growth of shrubs and small trees; scrub
- land covered with scrub
- broken or cut branches or twigs; brushwood
- wooded sparsely populated country; backwoods
Word Origin
Word Origin and History for brush off
brush
n.1
"dust-sweeper, a brush for sweeping," late 14c., also, c.1400, "brushwood, brushes;" from Old French broisse (Modern French brosse) "a brush" (13c.), perhaps from Vulgar Latin *bruscia "a bunch of new shoots" (used to sweep away dust), perhaps from Proto-Germanic *bruskaz "underbrush."
brush
n.2
"shrubbery," early 14c., from Anglo-French bruce "brushwood," Old North French broche, Old French broce "bush, thicket, undergrowth" (12c., Modern French brosse), from Gallo-Romance *brocia, perhaps from *brucus "heather," or possibly from the same source as brush (n.1).
brush
v.1
late 15c., "to clean or rub (clothing) with a brush," also (mid-15c.) "to beat with a brush," from brush (n.1). Related: Brushed; brushing. To brush off someone or something, "rebuff, dismiss," is from 1941.
brush
v.2
"move briskly" especially past or against something or someone, 1670s, from earlier sense (c.1400) "to hasten, rush," probably from brush (n.2), on the notion of a horse, etc., passing through dense undergrowth (cf. Old French brosser "travel (through woods)," and Middle English noun brush "charge, onslaught, encounter," mid-14c.), but brush (n.1) probably has contributed something to it as well. Related: Brushed; brushing.
Idioms and Phrases with brush off
brush off
Dismiss or rebuff, as in Roberta brushed off the poor reviews with a shrug, or You can't brush off a boyfriend and expect him to do you a favor. This expression, transferring sweeping off crumbs to a curt dismissal, was first recorded about 1820. However, it became common usage only in the 1930s. Also see give someone the air (brush off).
brush
In addition to the idioms beginning with brush
- brush aside
- brush off
- brush up
also see:
- give someone the air (brush off)
- have a brush with
- tarred with the same brush