throw off

verb

threw off; thrown off; throwing off; throws off

transitive verb

1

a

: to free oneself from : get rid of

threw off his inhibitions

b

: to cast off often in a hurried or vigorous manner : abandon

threw off all restraint

c

: distract, divert

dogs thrown off by a false scent

2

: emit, give off

stacks throwing off plumes of smoke

3

: to produce in an offhand manner : execute with speed or facility

some little … tune that the composer had thrown off

—James Hilton

4

a

: to cause to depart from an expected or desired course

mistakes threw his calculations off a bit

b

: to cause to make a mistake : mislead

5

: earn, generate

an investment that throws off a sizable income

intransitive verb

1

: to begin hunting

2

: to make derogatory comments

Synonyms

• abstract
• call off
• detract
• distract
• divert

Examples of throw off in a Sentence

the sudden noise just threw me off completely, and I missed my shot

Recent Examples on the Web

The story follows three couples who vacation with each other each season, but their harmony is thrown off balance when one of them gets divorced and brings a new partner into the fold. —Lucy Ford, TIME, 20 Dec. 2024

Why not spend hours playing, building up your riches and success only to watch it all get thrown off the table. —Caoimhe O'Neill, The Athletic, 19 Dec. 2024

But even if Secret Level viewers can’t just boot up a few rounds of Concord, this episode — a not-bad Guardians of the Galaxy knockoff about a squabbling spaceship crew on a mission to throw off the bonds of space capitalism — is one of the show’s more distinctive and breezy installments. —Scott Meslow, Vulture, 17 Dec. 2024

For example, in April, one Aspen house sold for $108 million, the highest a house has ever sold for in the area, which the worker said threw off the county's average for the rest of the year. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 12 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1b

Kids Definition

throw off

verb

: to send out : emit

a sparkler throws off sparks