pass off

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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Examples of pass off in a Sentence

These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Recent Examples on the Web Details regarding the closing ceremony remain under lock-and-key, but one detail that is known is that Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo will be passing off the Olympic flag to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. Harrison Richlin, IndieWire, 1 Aug. 2024 The siege of civilians and other war crimes must not be passed off in euphemisms. Annie Sparrow, Foreign Affairs, 11 Jan. 2017 Once on the ground, Jason & Co. learn that Drew has a side hustle, training the SOGs on the side (passing off Rambo movie moves as non-standard SEAL tactics). Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 12 Aug. 2024 Lake tried to pass off her hostility to McCain as a joke earlier this year, sparking another round of anger from McCain’s daughter Meghan McCain. Ronald J. Hansen, The Arizona Republic, 5 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for pass off 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pass off
Verb
  • The duo have long been open about their parenthood journeys, from annual birthday wishes on Instagram and posting about their first Easter as a family of six this year, to Ciara even documenting Wilson giving her a hand with breastfeeding.
    Brenton Blanchet, People.com, 28 Oct. 2024
  • And Ukrainians wish the West could understand: There is nothing peaceful about Russian occupation.
    Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 28 Oct. 2024
Verb
  • The prosecutor in his first case had sought permission to add enhancements for use of a firearm and inflicting great bodily injury.
    East Bay Times editorial, The Mercury News, 25 Oct. 2024
  • Given that the team documented one snake devouring a 77-lbs deer about two-thirds its total mass, these potential prey revisions both revise existing impact estimates, as well as help explain how Burmese pythons are inflicting so much ecological damage in Florida.
    Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 24 Oct. 2024
Verb
  • No massive relief from tariffs that the Trump administration imposed – but no major trade war either.
    Matt Egan, CNN, 30 Oct. 2024
  • During the 2021-22 session of the California Legislature, Golden State lawmakers and Governor Gavin Newsom (D) enacted Assembly Bill 257, legislation that created the first state Fast Food Council, a new Sacramento bureaucracy tasked with imposing costly new regulations on franchisees.
    Patrick Gleason, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
Verb
  • And there’s an art to delegating, without seemingly palming off work to your team.
    Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2023
  • 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
  • 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
  • Most chose instead to fob off the hard decisions to central bankers.
    William Pesek, Forbes, 10 Sep. 2021
Verb
  • This is not Boban Marjanović fully palming Keanu Reeves’s head in John Wick 3.
    Vikram Murthi, Vulture, 4 Mar. 2024
  • Miller shouts, palming the phone in his right hand like a basketball, repeating it again for effect.
    Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 21 May 2024

Thesaurus Entries Near pass off

Cite this Entry

“Pass off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pass%20off. Accessed 8 Nov. 2024.

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