take off

Definitions

1. 1

   To remove.

   • He took off his shoes.
   • The test grader takes off a point for every misspelled word.
   • Tomorrow the doctor will take the cast off her arm.
2. 2

   To imitate (somebody), often in a satirical manner.

   • Pym would take him off perfectly, thought Brotherhood. Pym would catch that accent to a tee.
3. 3

   To leave the ground and ascend into the air or into flight.

   • The plane has been cleared to take off from runway 3.
   • That high-jumper takes off from her left foot.
   • Mute swans need a long stretch of water in order to take off.
4. ›+ 9 more definitionsshow fewer

   1. 4

      To stand up on a surfboard and begin to surf a breaking wave.

      • You take off, make the steep drop, hear the white water rumbling behind you and feel the spray on your back.
   2. 5

      To become successful, to flourish.

      • The business has really taken off this year and has made quite a profit.
      • 2007 July 12, The Guardian, A welcome invasion. The message is now the medium – that is powerful and means products can take off practically all by themselves.
      • But “My Heart Will Go On” didn’t just take off — it became synonymous with Cameron’s blockbuster movie, and a signature for Dion.
   3. 6

      To depart.

      • I'm going to take off now.
      • Take off, loser!
      • It is so easy when problems arise in a relationship to just take off.
   4. 7

      To quantify.

      • I'll take off the concrete and steel for this construction project.
   5. 8

      To absent oneself from (work or other responsibility), especially with permission.

      • If you take off for Thanksgiving you must work Christmas and vice versa.
      • He decided to let his mother take a night off from cooking, so he took her and his siblings out to dinner.
   6. 9

      To take drugs

      To take drugs; to inject drugs.

   7. 10

      To steal (something) or rob (someone).

   8. 11

      To swallow.

      • to take off a glass of wine
   9. 12

      Nonstandard spelling of takeoff.

      • France never experienced a "take off" of the sort hypothesized by W. W. Rostow — a sudden spurt of output that begins sustained industrial growth.
      • Therefore, the only sure way to estimate the quantity of lumber required for any particular job is to do a take off of each piece of lumber needed for the work.
      • This is virtually equal to the minimum value shown above to be necessary in the case of a total loss in thrust from one of the four engines at take off.

The neighborhood

• antonymdonantonym(s) of “remove”
• antonymput onantonym(s) of “remove”
• antonymlandantonym(s) of “ascend”
• antonymtouch downantonym(s) of “begin flight”