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Kill vs Off - What's the difference?

kill | off |

As verbs the difference between kill and off

is that kill is to put to death; to extinguish the life of while off is (slang) to kill.

As a noun kill

is the act of killing or kill can be a creek; a body of water; a channel or arm of the sea or kill can be a kiln.

As a adverb off is

in a direction away from the speaker or object.

As a adjective off is

inoperative, disabled.

As a preposition off is

(used to indicate movement away from a position on).

kill

English

(wikipedia kill)

Etymology 1

From (etyl) killen, kyllen, , (etyl) kellen.

Verb

(en verb)
  • To put to death; to extinguish the life of.
    • Smoking kills more people each year than alcohol and drugs combined.
    There is conclusive evidence that smoking kills .
  • (fiction) To invent a story that conveys the death of (a character).
    • Shakespeare killed Romeo and Juliet for drama.
  • To render inoperative.
    • He killed the engine and turned off the headlights, but remained in the car, waiting.
    (1978):
  • :: Peter : Ask Childers if it was worth his arm.
  • :: Policeman : What did you do to his arm, Peter?
  • :: Peter''': I '''killed it, with a machine gun.
  • (figuratively) To stop, cease or render void; to terminate.
    • The editor decided to kill the story.
    The news that a hurricane had destroyed our beach house killed our plans to sell it.
    My computer wouldn't respond until I killed some of the running processes.
  • (transitive, figuratively, hyperbole) To amaze, exceed, stun or otherwise incapacitate.
    • That night, she was dressed to kill .
    That joke always kills me.
  • (figuratively) To produce feelings of dissatisfaction or revulsion in.
    • It kills me to throw out three whole turkeys, but I can't get anyone to take them and they've already started to go bad.
    It kills me to learn how many poor people are practically starving in this country while rich moguls spend such outrageous amounts on useless luxuries.
  • To use up or to waste.
    • I'm just doing this to kill time.
    He told the bartender, pointing at the bottle of scotch he planned to consume, "Leave it, I'm going to kill the bottle."
  • (transitive, figuratively, informal) To exert an overwhelming effect on.
    • Between the two of us, we killed the rest of the case of beer.
    Look at the amount of destruction to the enemy base. We pretty much killed their ability to retaliate anymore.
  • (transitive, figuratively, hyperbole) To overpower, overwhelm or defeat.
    • The team had absolutely killed their traditional rivals, and the local sports bars were raucous with celebrations.
  • To force a company out of business.
  • (informal) To produce intense pain.
    • You don't ever want to get rabies. The doctor will have to give you multiple shots and they really kill .
  • (figuratively, informal, hyperbole) To punish severely.
    • My parents are going to kill me!
  • (sports) To strike a ball or similar object with such force and placement as to make a shot that is impossible to defend against, usually winning a point.
  • * {{quote-news
    • , year=2011 , date=February 4 , author=Gareth Roberts , title=Wales 19-26 England , work=BBC citation , page= , passage=That close call encouraged Wales to launch another series of attacks that ended when lock Louis Deacon killed the ball illegally in the shadow of England's posts.}}
  • (mathematics, transitive, idiomatic, informal) To cause to assume the value zero.
  • (computing, Internet, IRC) To disconnect (a user) forcibly from the network.
    • Synonyms
    * (to put to death) assassinate, bump off, ice, knock off, liquidate, murder, rub out, slaughter, slay, top, whack * (to use up or waste) fritter away, while away * (to render inoperative) break, deactivate, disable, turn off * (to exert an overwhelming effect on) annihilate (informal) * See also

    Related terms

    * instakill * killer * killing * killjoy * kill off * kill-time

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • The act of killing.
    • The assassin liked to make a clean kill , and thus favored small arms over explosives.
  • Specifically, the death blow.
    • The hunter delivered the kill with a pistol shot to the head.
  • The result of killing; that which has been killed.
    • The fox dragged its kill back to its den.
  • (volleyball) The grounding of the ball on the opponent's court, winning the rally.
  • * 2011 , the 34th Catawba College Sports Hall of Fame'', in 's ''Campus Magazine , Spring/Summer 2011, page 21:
    • As a senior in 1993, Turner had a kill' percentage of 40.8, which was a school record at the time and the best in the SAC. Turner concluded her volleyball career with 1,349 ' kills , ranking fifth all-time at Catawba.
    Derived terms
    * in for the kill * thrill kill

    Etymology 2

    From (etyl)

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A creek; a body of water; a channel or arm of the sea.
    • The channel between Staten Island and Bergen Neck is the Kill''' van Kull, or the '''Kills .
    Schuylkill''', Cats'''kill , etc.

    Etymology 3

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A kiln.
    • (Fuller)
    1000 English basic words ----

    off

    English

    Adverb

    (en adverb)
  • In a direction away from the speaker or object.
  • *
    • , title=(The Celebrity), chapter=4 , passage=No matter how early I came down, I would find him on the veranda, smoking cigarettes, or
  • Into a state of non-operation; into a state of non-existence.

    • Usage notes

    * Used in many , off'' is an adverbial particle often mistakenly thought of as a preposition. (It ''can be used as a preposition, but such usage is rare and usually informal; see below.)

    Synonyms

    * away, out

    Antonyms

    * on, in

    Derived terms

    * back off * bite off * break off * bring off * call off * clean off * cut off, cutoff * die off * drop off * fall off * fuck off * get off * go off * goof off * hold off * keep off * kick off, kickoff * knock off * lay off, layoff * leave off * let off * light off * live off * make off * make off with * nod off * pay off, payoff * piss off * pull off * put off * ring off * rip off, ripoff * round off * run off, runoff * see off * set off * show off, showoff * sleep off * shake off * switch off * take off * tell off * tick off * turn off, turnoff * walk it off * wear off

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • Inoperative, disabled.
  • :All the lights are off .
  • Rancid, rotten.
  • :This milk is off !
  • (cricket) In, or towards the half of the field away from the batsman's legs; the right side for a right-handed batsman.
  • Less than normal, in temperament or in result.
  • :sales are off this quarter
  • Circumstanced (as in well off'', ''better off'', ''poorly off ).
  • *
  • Started on the way.
  • :off to see the wizard
  • :And they're off ! Whatsmyname takes an early lead, with Remember The Mane behind by a nose.
  • *
  • Far; off to the side.
  • :the off horse or ox in a team, in distinction from the nigh or near horse
  • *
  • *:So this was my future home, I thought!Backed by towering hills, the but faintly discernible purple line of the French boundary off to the southwest, a sky of palest Gobelin flecked with fat, fleecy little clouds, it in truth looked a dear little city; the city of one's dreams.
  • *1937 , (Zora Neale Hurston), Their Eyes Were Watching God , Harper Perennial (2000), p.151:
  • *:He came in, took a look and squinched down into a chair in an off corner and didn’t open his mouth.
  • Designating a time when one is not strictly attentive to business or affairs, or is absent from a post, and, hence, a time when affairs are not urgent.
  • :He took an off''' day for fishing.  an '''off''' year in politics; the '''off season

    • Antonyms

    * (inoperative) on * (rotten) fresh * (cricket) on, leg

    Derived terms

    * off to the races

    Preposition

    (English prepositions)
  • (Used to indicate movement away from a position on)
    • I took it off''' the table.''; ''Come '''off the roof!
  • (colloquial) Out of the possession of.
    • He didn't buy it off''' him. He stole it '''off him.
  • Away from or not on.
    • He's off''' the computer, but he's still on the phone.''; ''Keep '''off the grass.
  • Disconnected or subtracted from.
    • We've been off''' the grid for three days now.''; ''He took 20% '''off the list price.
  • Distant from.
    • We're just off''' the main road.''; ''The island is 23 miles ' off the cape.
  • No longer wanting or taking.
    • He's been off''' his feed since Tuesday.''; ''He's '''off his meds again.
    • Tantalum bar 6 off 3/8" Dia × 12" — Atom, Great Britain Atomic Energy Authority, 1972
    samples submitted … 12 off Thermistors type 1K3A531 … — BSI test report for shock and vibration testing, 2000
    I'd like to re-order those printer cartridges, let's say 5-off .

    Antonyms

    *

    Derived terms

    * off-campus * off one's feed

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • (slang) To kill.
    • He got in the way so I had him offed .
  • (Singapore) To switch off.
    • Can you off the light?

    Derived terms

    * off-licence, off-license, offie, offy

    Statistics

    * 1000 English basic words 200 English basic words English contranyms English locatives English prepositions English three-letter words