make off
Britishverb
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(intr, adverb) to go or run away in haste
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to steal or abduct
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Depart in haste, run away, as in The cat took one look at Richard and made off . [c. 1700]
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make off with . Take something away; also, steal something, as in I can't write it down; Tom made off with my pen , or The burglars made off with the stereo and computer as well as jewelry . [Early 1800s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In 2017, a van transporting an exam paper in the eastern Indian state of Bihar was intercepted by scammers, who attempted to make off with the papers but were foiled.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 20, 2026
It's not just wild elephants they are worried about but animals like wild boars, tigers, bison and monkeys that make off with their cattle and eat their crops.
From BBC • Feb. 22, 2024
“It was about jewelry, so it’s a bit different,” said Ms. Carlier, who will be showing medieval and Renaissance works, ones that are harder to make off with.
From New York Times • Mar. 2, 2023
"This is a very difficult case to make off the phone call," Christie began.
From Salon • Mar. 1, 2023
“You’re not going anywhere. First you steal my husband’s boat; now you’re trying to make off with something that’s his.”
From "The Boy Who Met a Whale" by Nizrana Farook
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
