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• drop-off
  drop-off

  noun

  a vertical or very steep descent.
• drop off
  drop off

  verb

  (intr) to grow smaller or less; decline

drop-off

American  

[drop-awf, -of] / ˈdrɒpˌɔf, -ˌɒf /

noun

• drop-offs
  plural

1. a vertical or very steep descent.

   The trail has a drop-off of several hundred feet.

2. a decline; decrease.

   Sales have shown a considerable drop-off this year.

3. a place where a person or thing can be left, received, accommodated, etc..

   a new drop-off for outpatients.

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adjective

1. applied when a rented vehicle is left elsewhere than at the point of hire.

   to pay a drop-off charge.

drop off British  

verb

1. (intr) to grow smaller or less; decline

2. (tr) to allow to alight; set down

3. informal (intr) to fall asleep

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noun

1. a steep or vertical descent

2. a sharp decrease

drop off Idioms  

1. Fall asleep, as in When I looked at Grandma, she had dropped off . [Early 1800s]

2. Decrease; also, become less frequent. For example, Sales have dropped off markedly , or Over the year her visits dropped off . [Early 1800s]

3. Deliver, unload, as in Bill dropped off the package at the office .

4. Die, as in He is so ill he could drop off any time . [Early 1800s]

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• drop-offs
  plural

Etymology

Origin of drop-off

First recorded in 1955–60; noun, adj. use of verb phrase drop off

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

drop-off drop off drop-offs

The potential explanations for this staggering drop-off include a nagging shoulder injury, Maye’s decision-making, and his cratering confidence—which only leads to more mistakes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

But they also noted that some of the drop-off this year coincided with the Winter Olympics and the World Cup.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026

“Breakfast” typically consists of coffee and a protein bar eaten as she pulls out of the school drop-off line.

From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026

Early voting and drop-off locations for the general election will be posted to the secretary of state’s website on Oct.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026

The bottom is unsteady—at times rocky, then a sudden drop-off, then soft and mossy.

From "Paradise on Fire" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Adikalie said: "When we're trying to contact customers to pick up and drop off their shoes, it's a bit of a struggle trying to get through to them."

From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026

She added the fall in valuation "does reflect that drop off in investor appetite for Shein's shares".

From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026

AI workloads cause massive power demand spikes during computation, and a drop off as those computation results are gathered, according to a paper from Schneider Electric.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

You “absolutely need a mudroom,” in the Northeast, since people walk in with snow and rain on their boots and need a place to drop off “sporty, sweaty, muddy, rainy, snowy” stuff.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026

Add another ten to drop off the last kid.

From "Marcus Vega Doesn't Speak Spanish" by Pablo Cartaya

The added bonus— I could do all of this between school drop-offs, pick-ups and everything in between.

From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026

Spikes in AI computation followed by rapid drop-offs are common, a fluctuation that puts significant strain on electricity-generation equipment.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026

"At home, I am just the mum, I do the daycare drop-offs," Nash tells BBC Newsbeat.

From BBC ● Jun. 11, 2026

One driver told the BBC his firm would do up to 15 drop-offs daily from a hotel in south-east London to a doctors surgery around two miles away.

From BBC ● Feb. 4, 2026

Meanwhile, Barbara and John, at fourteen and eleven, needed everything from skating-lesson drop-offs to late-night homework advice.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

Related Words

• diminish
• dwindle
• fall away
• fall off
• lessen
• sag
• slacken