go off

verb

went off; gone off; going off; goes off

intransitive verb

1

: explode

2

: to burst forth or break out suddenly or noisily

3

: to go forth, out, or away : leave

4

: to undergo decline or deterioration

5

: to follow the expected or desired course : proceed

the party went off well

6

: to make a characteristic noise : sound

could hear the alarm going off

Phrases

go off the deep end

1

: to enter recklessly on a course

2

: to become very much excited

Synonyms

• blow
• blow up
• burst
• crump
• detonate
• explode
• pop

Examples of go off in a Sentence

specialists were able to deactivate the bomb before it went off

the wedding went off without so much as a single glitch

Recent Examples on the Web

There were just too many fireworks going off for anything else to make sense! —Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 21 Nov. 2024

The gun went off, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. —Mandalit Del Barco, NPR, 20 Nov. 2024

The blast goes off while the Prices are detained at the airport. —Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Nov. 2024

The first of two explosions went off on Wednesday evening in a parking lot near the court building and a second blast came seconds later in front of the court, where the man’s body was found. —Reuters, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1579, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

go off

verb

1

: explode sense 2b

2

: to burst forth or break out suddenly or noisily

3

: to take place : proceed

the dance went off as planned