go off

Definition of go offnext
1
as in to explode
to break open or into pieces usually because of internal pressure specialists were able to deactivate the bomb before it went off

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of go off So don't go off topic, don't impersonate anyone, and don't get your facts wrong. Zac Ntim, Deadline, 11 Feb. 2026 First responders found the vehicle, which went off a cliff and plunged more than 500 feet, ending up on the rocks below. Tim Fang, CBS News, 11 Feb. 2026 For Eldridge to see time in the outfield, multiple things would have had to go off the rails. Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 11 Feb. 2026 Maher Abdallah, a physician and director of the clinic, marveled that no one was killed in the office because the bomb went off on a Saturday morning. Curt Devine, CNN Money, 10 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for go off
Recent Examples of Synonyms for go off
Verb
  • The benign case is that China is doing small-scale testing to ensure its weapons won't explode accidentally.
    Geoff Brumfiel, NPR, 11 Feb. 2026
  • Butler started WeSchool more recently, when interest in at-home learning exploded during the pandemic.
    Kate Armanini, Chicago Tribune, 11 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • But Hewitt said that confidence has grown as the season has progressed.
    Lori Riley, Hartford Courant, 9 Feb. 2026
  • As the game progressed and a snowstorm descended on Denver in the fourth quarter, the field became obscured by a blanket of white.
    Jason Corso, Fortune, 8 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Airport officials project more than 20,000 passengers will depart Louisville by plane the day after Derby 152.
    Leo Bertucci, Louisville Courier Journal, 5 Feb. 2026
  • The 28-year-old fills a void left by center Myles Turner, who departed Indiana in the offseason for a free-agent contract with Milwaukee.
    Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 5 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • An explosive test can mean many different things While the major nuclear powers have not detonated a nuclear bomb in decades, that doesn't mean work on nuclear weapons stopped.
    Geoff Brumfiel, NPR, 11 Feb. 2026
  • The statement said the attacker on Friday opened fire on security guards who tried to stop him at the main gate before detonating his explosive vest after reaching the mosque's inner gate.
    MUNIR AHMED, Arkansas Online, 8 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • The southern Portuguese city of Alcacer do Sal, about 60 miles from Lisbon, was battling rising waters from the river Sado, with downtown areas flooded and water levels measuring roughly 7 feet high in some places.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 6 Feb. 2026
  • For people that are not tracking what that actually means, that means that ICE can do almost no arrests in the entire country … If a court rules that there’s a final order of removal, they’re removed actually by an administrative warrant, not a judicial warrant.
    Morgan Chalfant, semafor.com, 6 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • The network previously confirmed that Guthrie would be exiting its Olympics coverage amid the search for her mother.
    Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 6 Feb. 2026
  • The intersection is controlled by stop signs, and many vehicles using the area are either getting onto southbound Highway 160 or exiting northbound Highway 160.
    Ariane Lange, Sacbee.com, 5 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • The tense conversation continued for several minutes before a peculiar discrepancy popped up.
    J.C. Hallman, Oklahoman, 10 Feb. 2026
  • So Hernández’s eye-popping rise feels like a major ballot-changing moment.
    Jayson Stark, New York Times, 10 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Gates bought the Xanadu land in 1988 for just $2 million—then proceeded to pour about $63 million into the property, which has 24 bathrooms, but oddly just seven bedrooms.
    Sydney Lake, Fortune, 8 Feb. 2026
  • The arrest and arraignment of Burns initially proceeded as the law intended.
    Stephen Mihm, Twin Cities, 8 Feb. 2026

Cite this Entry

“Go off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/go%20off. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.

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