fight off

British  

verb

1. to repulse; repel

2. to struggle to avoid or repress

   to fight off a cold

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fight off Idioms  

1. Defend against, drive back, as in I've been fighting off a cold all week. This figurative use of the term, originally meaning “to repel an enemy” dates from the early 1800s.

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Example Sentences

He travels through his territory in a small convoy of armored vehicles with a team equipped to fight off aggressors until reinforcements arrive.

From The Wall Street Journal

"Some parents question why children need so many or think that their children are healthy enough to fight off these diseases," adds Ashraf.

From BBC

“Baywatch” showrunner Matt Nix was in the middle of fighting off the wildfire that ravaged his Altadena neighborhood and got dangerously close to his home when he first got the call to lead the reboot.

From Los Angeles Times

On the shorter-term daily charts, the ETF managed to fight off a bear push at the end of 2025.

From MarketWatch

He and Chip were both equally tall and gangly—it wasn’t like Jonah had any extra muscles for fighting off attackers.

From Literature