pass off
Britishverb
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to be or cause to be accepted or circulated in a false character or identity
he passed the fake diamonds off as real
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(intr) to come to a gradual end; disappear
eventually the pain passed off
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to emit (a substance) as a gas or vapour, or (of a substance) to be emitted in this way
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(intr) to take place
the meeting passed off without disturbance
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(tr) to set aside or disregard
I managed to pass off his insult
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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 .
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Be completed or carried out, take place, as in The meeting passed off without incident . [Late 1700s]
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.
When they try to pass off the stupid thing they said as a “joke.”
From Salon ● May 20, 2026
“But, especially in places like math and coding, you can pass off the output of LLMs to, or direct the LLMs with, other technologies that had lost favor but actually are very useful.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026
While most pass off without any controversy, some are contentious.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2025
Kelley Warburton scored on a 30-yard pass off a trick play early in the fourth quarter as the Huskies tried to fight back.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 16, 2024
Townsfolk regularly tried to pass off halfdead or gingered up nags to us, knowing that by the time we discovered our mistakes we’d be miles and days away.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
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.
