come off

verb

came off; come off; coming off; comes off

intransitive verb

1

a

: to acquit oneself : fare

came off well in the contest

b

: appear, seem

2

: succeed

a television series that never came off

—TV Guide

3

: happen, occur

4

US, informal

—used in phrases like where do you come off? to express anger or annoyance at what someone has said or done

Marie was bent over the table now, reading, her piping girlish voice hot with indignation. "Where does she come off, anyway?"

—T. Coraghessan Boyle

transitive verb

1

: to have recently completed or recovered from

coming off a good year

2

: to have recently stopped using (an illegal drug)

an addict who is coming off heroin

Synonyms

• be
• befall
• betide
• chance
• come
• come about
• come down
• cook
• do
• go down [slang]
• go on
• hap
• happen
• occur
• pass
• transpire

Examples of come off in a Sentence

couldn't believe that the wedding would actually come off—they've been “just dating” for years

the attempted revival of the city's downtown never really came off, and even more stores eventually closed

Recent Examples on the Web

The Rams are coming off a 19-9 victory over the New York Jets, a win highlighted by the return of veteran tight end Tyler Higbee, who scored the go-ahead touchdown on a pass from Matthew Stafford. —Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 27 Dec. 2024

But in the online political ecosystem, many of them come off more as fans than as objective observers. —Makena Kelly, WIRED, 27 Dec. 2024

While that platoon has worked in the past, both of them are coming off of down years. —Tom Rogers, Newsweek, 26 Dec. 2024

That means the money comes off the top of the price of equipment or installation. —Julia Simon, NPR, 25 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1590, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a