put off

verb

put off; putting off; puts off

transitive verb

1

a

: disconcert

b

: repel

2

a

: to hold back to a later time

b

: to induce to wait

put the bill collector off

3

: to rid oneself of : take off

4

: to sell or pass fraudulently

Synonyms

• defer
• delay
• hold off (on)
• hold over
• hold up
• lay over
• postpone
• put over
• remit
• shelve

Examples of put off in a Sentence

never put off until tomorrow what you can do today

put off your coat and stay awhile

Recent Examples on the Web

Some will no doubt be put off in first glance fashion by Visa paying for shelf space. —John Tamny, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024

Virginia Baptists joined the fight in droves. Baptists, Catholics and Jews were not put off by any of the Revolution’s radical deists: a mostly unorganized group of religious thinkers who believed in God and reason, but not revelation or miracles. —Adam Jortner, The Conversation, 18 Oct. 2024

But some are put off by her indiscretions and messy personal life. —Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2024

The show’s title is very bad (or at least bad enough to put off viewers… until now). —Ben Travers, IndieWire, 9 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

put off

verb

1

: to cause negative feelings in

your sloppy appearance put them off

2

: to hold back to a later time : defer

put off my visit to the dentist

3

: to rid oneself of

put off your coat