take off

take off
take off
1. Fig. to leave the ground and begin to fly. (As with a bird or an airplane.) •

When do we take off ?

The eagle took off and headed toward the mountains.

2. Fig. [for someone] to leave in a hurry. •

She really took off from there quickly.

I've got to take off—I'm late.

3. Fig. [for something] to start selling well. •

The fluffy dog dolls began to take off, and we sold out the lot.

Ticket sales really took off after the first performance.

4. Fig. to become active and exciting. •

Did the party ever take off, or was it dull all night?

Things began to take off about midnight.

* * *
{v. phr.} 1a. To leave fast; depart suddenly; run away. * /The dog took off after a rabbit./ Compare: LIGHT OUT. 1b. {informal} To go away; leave. * /The six boys got into the car and took off for the drug store./ 2. To leave on a flight, begin going up. * /A helicopter is able to take off and land straight up or down./ 3. {informal} To imitate amusingly; copy another person's habitual actions or speech. * /He made a career of taking off famous people for nightclub audiences./ * /At the party, Charlie took off the principal and some of the teachers./ 4. To take (time) to be absent from work. * /When his wife was sick he took off from work./ * /Bill was tired out so he took the day off./

Dictionary of American idioms. 2013.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР
Synonyms:

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Take off — v. t. 1. To remove, as from the surface or outside; to remove from the top of anything; as, to take off a load; to take off one s hat. [1913 Webster] 2. To cut off; as, to take off the head, or a limb. [1913 Webster] 3. To destroy; as, to take o …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Take-off — rsp. Takeoff (englisch: take off, take off oder takeoff) bezeichnet: das Abheben eines Luftfahrzeuges, siehe Start (Luftfahrt) Take off Modell, ein Modell in der Entwicklungstheorie, siehe The Stages of Economic Growth: A Noncommunist Manifesto… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • take off — {v. phr.} 1a. To leave fast; depart suddenly; run away. * /The dog took off after a rabbit./ Compare: LIGHT OUT. 1b. {informal} To go away; leave. * /The six boys got into the car and took off for the drug store./ 2. To leave on a flight, begin… …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • take|off — take off or take|off «TAYK F, OF», noun, adjective. –n. 1. the leaving of the ground in leaping or in beginning a flight in an aircraft; taking off: »Vertical take offs and landings long have been a goal of aircraft engineers and builders (Wall… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Take off — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Take Off Your Pants and Jacket (surnommé TOYPAJ) est le quatrième album enregistré en studio du groupe californien de pop punk Blink 182. Taxi Take off… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • take-off — [ tɛkɔf ] n. m. inv. • 1961; mot angl. , de to take off « décoller (avion) » ♦ Anglic. Écon. Phase de démarrage (d une entreprise, d une unité sociale); croissance auto entretenue (d un pays, d une économie en voie de développement). ⇒… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • take off — [tɛkɔf] n. m. ÉTYM. 1961; mot angl., de to take off « décoller » (en parlant d un avion). ❖ ♦ Anglic. Écon. Départ, démarrage, essor (d une entreprise, d une unité sociale). ⇒ Décollage (fig.); décoller. Par ext. || …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Take-off — Take off, auch Take|off [teik ɔf] das u. der; s, s <aus gleichbed. engl. take off zu to take off »wegnehmen, bringen«>: 1. Start (einer Rakete, eines Flugzeugs). 2. Start, Beginn, Durchbruch; wirtschaftliches Wachstum …   Das große Fremdwörterbuch

  • take off — [v1] leave; leave the ground ascend, bear, beat it, become airborne, begone, blast off, blow*, clear out*, decamp, depart, disappear, exit, get off, get out, go, go away, head, hightail*, hit the road*, hit the trail*, lift off, light out*, make* …   New thesaurus

  • take off — take (something) off to not work at your job for a period of time. I ve decided to take next semester off and travel and write. Jim needs to take off for a little while …   New idioms dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”