as in to wish
to offer (something fake, useless, or inferior) as genuine, useful, or valuable
the con man tried to pass off a piece of blue glass as a sapphire
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pass off
Sprung by a pass off the wall from the neutral zone by linemate James van Riemsdyk, Johnson tracked the puck down and pulled to a quick stop on the left dot to create a bit of space with Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram.
—
Aaron Portzline, The Athletic, 5 Feb. 2025
Wine fraud can take various forms; culprits sometimes combine lesser wines to resemble bottles of top-tier vintages (as Kurniawan did), or sometimes simply pass off a cheaper wine as a more expensive one by faking the labels, cork and foil.
—Chris Hall, WIRED, 18 Dec. 2024
Increasingly, homework and exam writing are being done by generative AI instead of students, turned in and passed off as authentic work for grades, credit, and degrees.
—Derek Newton, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2024
Focus on the glass balls, pass off the plastic balls and let the rubber balls bounce.
—Jay Gauthier Jr., Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pass off
Aaron Portzline, The Athletic, 5 Feb. 2025
Wine fraud can take various forms; culprits sometimes combine lesser wines to resemble bottles of top-tier vintages (as Kurniawan did), or sometimes simply pass off a cheaper wine as a more expensive one by faking the labels, cork and foil.
—Chris Hall, WIRED, 18 Dec. 2024
Increasingly, homework and exam writing are being done by generative AI instead of students, turned in and passed off as authentic work for grades, credit, and degrees.
—Derek Newton, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2024
Focus on the glass balls, pass off the plastic balls and let the rubber balls bounce.
—Jay Gauthier Jr., Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pass off
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pass off
Verb
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If the account owner wishes to withdraw more than the RMD amount, this is allowed.—
Mark Davis,
Newsweek,
14 Mar. 2025
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Burt buys Irving a one-way ticket and wishes him well as Irving heads off into the unknown.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
14 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Palico's attacks with blunt weapons do not inflict stun and exhaust damages.—
Faisal Kutty,
Newsweek,
11 Mar. 2025
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Most of the long-range kamikaze drones and missiles employed in recent conflicts have been shot down; those that get through tend to inflict little damage on their targets.—
Stacie L. Pettyjohn,
Foreign Affairs,
10 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Trump earlier announced 25 percent targeted tariffs on Canada and Mexico, his country’s largest trade partners, and has threatened to impose tariffs on all Canadian goods imported into the U.S. on April 2.—
Etan Vlessing,
The Hollywood Reporter,
17 Mar. 2025
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This agreement, and others like it, didn’t do very much to mitigate the high tariffs imposed by the McKinley and Dingley Acts.—
John Cassidy,
The New Yorker,
17 Mar. 2025
Verb
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And there’s an art to delegating, without seemingly palming off work to your team.—
Orianna Rosa Royle,
Fortune,
2 Mar. 2023
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Giannoli’s narrator lays out press performance in Balzacian details that sound absolutely contemporary: News, debate, and ideas had become goods to palm off on subscribers.—
Armond White,
National Review,
10 June 2022
Verb
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But despite previous transparency around the cost-cutting measures, employees inquiring about how the budget cuts have impacted their performance review will now be fobbed off.—
Orianna Rosa Royle,
Fortune,
29 Aug. 2023
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Most chose instead to fob off the hard decisions to central bankers.—
William Pesek,
Forbes,
10 Sep. 2021
Verb
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Both teams threatened with Mikel Merino’s header palmed away by Matz Sels and David Raya denying Chris Wood at the other end.—
James McNicholas,
The Athletic,
26 Feb. 2025
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His stunning, one-handed outlet passes — often completed in a single fluid motion, without ever bringing the ball below his shoulders after palming the rebound — resemble water polo passes.—
Bennett Durando,
The Denver Post,
16 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pass off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pass%20off. Accessed 27 Mar. 2025.
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