shake off

British  

verb

1. to remove or be removed with or as if with a quick movement

   she shook off her depression

2. (tr) to escape from; elude

   they shook off the police

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shake off Idioms  

1. Free oneself or get rid of something or someone, as in I've had a hard time shaking off this cold, or She forged ahead, shaking off all the other runners. It is also put as give someone the shake, as in We managed to give our pursuers the shake. The first term dates from the late 1300s; the slangy variant dates from the second half of the 1800s.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

shake off

We just have to shake off a little rust first.

From Slate ● Jul. 20, 2026

For those associated with the club, the desire to watch a successful team next season is blended with a need to shake off the damage Eckert's actions have caused.

From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2026

Antonelli tried again into the first corner and had to back off, but now Russell could not shake off his team-mate.

From BBC ● May 24, 2026

“It is hard to shake off the bearish dynamic without a solution in the Middle East,” ING’s Benjamin Schroeder said in a note.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026

“But why have they let us?” asked Harry, who could not shake off the vision of tentacles rising out of the dark water the moment they were out of sight of the bank.

From "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling