go off
verb
went off; gone off; going off; goes off
1
a
: explode
b
of a gun
: shoot sense 1
2
: to burst forth or break out suddenly or noisily
3
: to go forth, out, or away : leave
went off to join the army
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
7
: to stop working
All the lights suddenly went off.
see also go off the deep end, go off with
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
Most shops and banks close in Germany over the Christmas period starting from the evening of December 24, and police only discovered the hole after a fire alarm went off in the early hours of Monday, December 29.
—
CNN Money, 30 Dec. 2025
However, everything went off without a hitch and there were instant sparks on their first date on June 6.
—Ashlyn Robinette, PEOPLE, 30 Dec. 2025
During the same period, 19 vehicles spun out, 249 went off the road and 16 semitrucks jackknifed.
—Wcco Staff, CBS News, 29 Dec. 2025
Hartung said the alarms went off, but there was no sprinkler system in the building.
—Cathy Kozlowicz, jsonline.com, 25 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for go off
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
CNN Money, 30 Dec. 2025
However, everything went off without a hitch and there were instant sparks on their first date on June 6.
—Ashlyn Robinette, PEOPLE, 30 Dec. 2025
During the same period, 19 vehicles spun out, 249 went off the road and 16 semitrucks jackknifed.
—Wcco Staff, CBS News, 29 Dec. 2025
Hartung said the alarms went off, but there was no sprinkler system in the building.
—Cathy Kozlowicz, jsonline.com, 25 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for go off
Cite this Entry
“Go off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/go%20off. Accessed 31 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share