off of

preposition

: off
Usage of Off of

The of is often criticized as superfluous, but off of is an idiom, and idioms follow their own logic. Use of off of is much more common in speech than in edited writing and is more common in American English than in British English.

Examples of off of in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
None of the illuminated material is ionized; it’s merely lit up by the central star’s light that gets reflected off of all of the ejecta. Big Think, 11 Feb. 2026 And many music venues, particularly those off of Broadway (downtown Nashville has buried power lines and fewer trees, and, in general, experienced less damage than neighborhoods), lost power and had to close. Margaret Littman, Rolling Stone, 10 Feb. 2026 Picking dog hair off of my clothes and cleaning up the potty messes outside (and potentially inside) were not my idea of fun. Sherri Gordon, Parents, 10 Feb. 2026 The Lakers cleaned up their first-half turnover woes – OKC scored 20 points off of 10 Lakers turnovers before halftime – and only produced five in the second half, but the Thunder (41-13) won the fourth quarter to put an end to the Lakers’ three-game winning streak. Benjamin Royer, Oc Register, 10 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for off of

Word History

First Known Use

1567, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of off of was in 1567

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Off of.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/off%20of. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.

Kids Definition

off of

preposition
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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