put off

verb

1. tr, adverb to postpone or delay

   they have put off the dance until tomorrow

2. tr, adverb to evade (a person) by postponement or delay

   they tried to put him off, but he came anyway

3. tr, adverb to confuse; disconcert

   he was put off by her appearance

4. tr, preposition to cause to lose interest in or enjoyment of

   the accident put him off driving

5. intr, adverb nautical to be launched off from shore or from a ship

   we put off in the lifeboat towards the ship

6. archaic.
   tr, adverb to remove (clothes)

noun

1. a pretext or delay

Idioms and Phrases

Delay or postpone, as in He always puts off paying his bills . This idiom, dating from the late 1300s, gave rise to the proverb Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today , first recorded in the late 1300s (in Chaucer's Tale of Melibee ) and repeated ever since. Also see put one off .

Example Sentences

I think I would have asked further, but Alan gave me the put-off.

From Project Gutenberg

At this Foxington laughed derisively, saying that it sounded very like a put-off.

From Project Gutenberg

I've ridden in from Kildare to-night to see the match, and I protest against any put-off.

From Project Gutenberg

The baby listened for a moment, then, deciding that this was only a put-off, began to cry again.

From Project Gutenberg

Here was another day wasted, and who was to say that the same put-off did not await me to-morrow?

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• adjourn
• hold off
• postpone
• reschedule
• shelve
• suspend