pass off

British  

verb

1. to be or cause to be accepted or circulated in a false character or identity

   he passed the fake diamonds off as real

2. (intr) to come to a gradual end; disappear

   eventually the pain passed off

3. to emit (a substance) as a gas or vapour, or (of a substance) to be emitted in this way

4. (intr) to take place

   the meeting passed off without disturbance

5. (tr) to set aside or disregard

   I managed to pass off his insult

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pass off Idioms  

1. Misrepresent something or someone, as in They tried to pass off that piece of glass as a gemstone , or Bill passed her off as his sister . [Late 1700s] Also see palm off .

2. Be completed or carried out, take place, as in The meeting passed off without incident . [Late 1700s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pass off

Opposing offenses built entire game plans around them, knowing it would often take throwing two guys in their way to give the quarterback a chance of getting a pass off.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

Sure, it might be annoying that studios are trying to pass off overly enthusiastic five-star Letterboxd reviews as legitimate film criticism in marketing on posters and in trailers.

From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026

The majority of students — 80% — say they would not use AI to submit classwork to pass off as their own.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 1, 2026

Fraudsters could theoretically attempt to pass off a different insect species as one of those four.

From BBC ● Feb. 9, 2026

He won a homework pass off a lucky guess and he confused me in Scattergories.

From "Because of Mr. Terupt" by Rob Buyea