go off
(STOP WORKING)
B1 If a light or a machine goes off, it stops working:
More examples
- The damage to the fuse box caused the power to go off.
- The light goes off when the batteries are flat.
- The match had to be abandoned when the floodlights went off.
- The electricity will be going off for ten minutes while the workmen test the circuit.
- It's getting cold. The heater must have gone off.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Machines - not functioning
- burn
- cut
- deactivate
- dead
- defunct
- disable
- fritz
- give up the ghost idiom
- go down
- haywire
- on the blink idiom
- out of commission idiom
- seize
- shudder
- shut
- shut (sth) off
- stop
- unusable
- whack
- wrong
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(EXPLODE)
C1 If a bomb goes off, it explodes:
C1 If a gun goes off, it fires:
More examples
- The firework went off in his face.
- They could hear the sound of bombs going off in the background.
- The explosives went off without warning.
- We must clear the area before the bomb goes off.
- Do not move until you hear the starting pistol go off.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Exploding and erupting
- blast
- blow
- blow (sb/sth) up
- blowout
- burst
- burst in on sb/sth
- burst in/into (somewhere)
- detonate
- erupt
- explode
- explosion
- flare
- go
- go pop idiom
- go up
- ignite
- live
- pop
- set
- set sth off
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(FOOD)
B2 UK If food or drink goes off, it is not good to eat or drink any more because it is too old:
More examples
- Put the milk back in the fridge or else it will go off.
- That meat looks like it's gone off.
- Cream will go off very quickly if it is not kept in the fridge.
- Preservatives are added to prevent food from going off so quickly.
- Food that is not stored correctly goes off more quickly.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Decaying and staying fresh
- best-before date
- biodegradable
- biodegrade
- compostable
- decay
- decompose
- keep
- molder
- out of date
- perish
- perishable
- pull date
- putrefaction
- putrefy
- rack
- seed
- sell-by date
- shrivel
- spoil
- wormy
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(NOISE)
B2 If a warning device goes off, it starts to ring loudly or make a loud noise:
More examples
- They could hear the fireworks going off in the distance.
- His car alarm is always going off by mistake.
- I got a real shock when the fire alarm went off.
- Take the chicken out of the oven when the timer goes off.
- A buzzer goes off if the door has been left open.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Sounds made by objects, movement or impact
- clash
- crackling
- ding
- ding-a-ling
- ding-dong
- fizz
- hoot
- jangling
- knock
- pip
- rasp
- ringer
- rumbling
- sing
- slam
- swish
- thud
- twang
- whine
- whistle
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(LEAVE)
B1 to leave a place and go somewhere else:
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Departing
- abandon
- absquatulate
- backward
- be ready to roll idiom
- bog
- desertion
- drive
- go down
- hit
- piss
- push along
- push off
- ready
- road
- run
- run away
- sally
- walk off (somewhere)
- walk out
- without (so much as) a backward glance idiom
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(HAPPEN)
to happen in a particular way:
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Occurring and happening
- afoot
- assail
- asynchronous
- attendant
- be at work idiom
- become
- come
- come up
- event
- go ahead
- go down
- go hand in hand with sth idiom
- go together
- go with sth
- hand
- happen
- intervene
- materialize
- turn up
- underway
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(BECOME WORSE)
UK to become worse in quality:
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Deteriorating and making worse
- a step backwards idiom
- a turn of the screw idiom
- add
- afford
- aggravate
- backslide
- compound
- decline
- degrade
- disintegrate
- dog
- downgrade
- downhill
- exacerbate
- regress
- relapse
- retrograde
- retrogress
- run yourself down
- slip
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