Definitions

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • prefix Away from; off.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English of-, from Old English of-, æf- ("off, away, down, un-"), from Proto-Germanic *af- (“off, away”), from Proto-Indo-European *apo- (“off, away”). Cognate with Dutch af- ("off, away, down"), German ab- ("off, from, down"), Latin ab- ("from, of"), Ancient Greek απο- (apo-, "away from, without").

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Examples

  • And also, when their opponents make some tactical errors. and we can talk about that, they can pull off-

    Who'll Challenge Romney? 2011

  • We met a year later when I was a community columnist for the Lexington Herald Leader and had written an off- the- wall column about how my greatest ambition was to be on Comment on Kentucky.

    Don McNay: Elvis and the definition of happiness Don McNay 2011

  • Mr. Issa said he supported the changes but added that he wants to "ensure that blame isn't off- loaded on just a few individuals for a matter that involved much higher levels of the Justice Department."

    Two Fall in Gun Scandal Evan Perez 2011

  • Apart from drawing up long-term plans, teams of engineers from both Hitachi and Toshiba have been working off- and on-site at Fukushima Daiichi to help Tepco with its efforts to cool the nuclear reactors to prevent further releases of radioactive materials.

    Companies Vie for Plant-Closing Job Juro Osawa 2011

  • We met a year later when I was a community columnist for the Lexington Herald Leader and had written an off- the- wall column about how my greatest ambition was to be on Comment on Kentucky.

    Don McNay: Elvis and the definition of happiness Don McNay 2011

  • But its litany of corporate ills is an overly inclusive laundry list of special interest gripes -- not unlike the wide range of on- and off- topic handmade signs I saw when I visited Zucotti Park this week.

    Jay Michaelson: Six Things Liberal Critics Don't Understand About the Occupy Wall Street Protests Jay Michaelson 2011

  • Gigot: But that would mean more cross-border strikes, more impositions on Pakistan's sovereignty, and perhaps some real conflict with the Pakistan military if we did it off-

    Finding bin Laden 2011

  • Collecting data, online or off-, can be extremely dangerous, says Mr. Saffo—and there must be accountability.

    E-COMMERCE THE STAFF OF The Wall Street Journal 2001

  • Williams captures not only Monroe's notorious fragility, both on-screen and off-, but also her magical, unclassifiable charisma.

    NYT > Home Page By DAVE ITZKOFF 2011

  • Most companies that hire women must provide a women-only section that is off- limits to the male staff.

    BusinessWeek.com -- Top News 2011

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