Off vs Over - What's the difference?
off | over |
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.
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
(Used to indicate movement away from a position on)
(colloquial) Out of the possession of.
Away from or not on.
Disconnected or subtracted from.
Distant from.
No longer wanting or taking.
(slang) To kill.
(Singapore) To switch off.
Thoroughly; completely; from beginning to end.
* 1661 , ,
From an upright position to being horizontal.
Horizontally; left to right or right to left.
From one position or state to another.
Overnight (throughout the night).
Again; another time; once more; over again.
(cricket) A set of six legal balls bowled.
Any surplus amount of money, goods delivered, etc.
* 2008 , G. Puttick, Sandy van Esch, The Principles and Practice of Auditing (page 609)
Physical positioning.
# On top of; above; higher than; further up.
#* (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow) (1807-1882)
#* {{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=September-October, author=(Henry Petroski)
, magazine=(American Scientist), title= # Across or spanning.
#* (Francis Bacon) (1561-1626)
#* , chapter=3
, title= #* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-29, volume=407, issue=8842, page=72-3, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= # In such a way as to cover.
# From one physical position to another via an obstacle that must be traversed vertically, first upwards and then downwards.
By comparison.
# More than; to a greater degree.
# Beyond; past; exceeding; too much or too far.
# (label) As compared to.
(label) Divided by.
Finished with; done with; from one state to another via a hindrance that must be solved or defeated; or via a third state that represents a significant difference from the first two.
While]] using, (especially) while [[consume, consuming.
* 1990 , (Seymour Chatman), Coming to Terms , , ISBN 0801497361, page 100[http://books.google.com/books?id=loD1JXOtmTYC&pg=PA100&dq=relax]:
* 1998 , Marian Swerdlow, Underground Woman , , ISBN 1566396107, page 88 [http://books.google.com/books?id=jIK3DGkOwYkC&pg=PA88&dq=croissants]:
* 2009 , Sara Pennypacker, The Great Egyptian Grave Robbery , , ISBN 9780545207867, page 79:
Concerning or regarding.
* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-08-10, volume=408, issue=8848, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= Above, implying superiority after a contest; in spite of; notwithstanding.
In radio communications: end of sentence, ready to receive reply.
As adverbs the difference between off and over
is that off is in a direction away from the speaker or object while over is , above.As prepositions the difference between off and over
is that off is (used to indicate movement away from a position on) while over is over.As an adjective off
is inoperative, disabled.As a verb off
is (slang) to kill.off
English
Adverb
(en adverb)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, outAntonyms
* on, inDerived 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 offAdjective
(en adjective)Antonyms
* (inoperative) on * (rotten) fresh * (cricket) on, legDerived terms
* off to the racesPreposition
(English prepositions)- I took it off''' the table.''; ''Come '''off the roof!
- He didn't buy it off''' him. He stole it '''off him.
- He's off''' the computer, but he's still on the phone.''; ''Keep '''off the grass.
- We've been off''' the grid for three days now.''; ''He took 20% '''off the list price.
- We're just off''' the main road.''; ''The island is 23 miles ' off the cape.
- 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 feedVerb
(en verb)- He got in the way so I had him offed .
- Can you off the light?
Derived terms
* off-licence, off-license, offie, offyover
English
(wikipedia over)Derived terms
*Adverb
(-)The Life of the most learned, reverend and pious Dr. H. Hammond
- During the whole time of his abode in the university he generally spent thirteen hours of the day in study; by which assiduity besides an exact dispatch of the whole course of philosophy, he read over in a manner all classic authors that are extant
Noun
(en noun)- ...standard cash count forms used to record the count and any overs or unders.
Preposition
(English prepositions)- Over them gleamed far off the crimson banners of morning.
The Evolution of Eyeglasses, passage=The ability of a segment of a glass sphere to magnify whatever is placed before it was known around the year 1000, when the spherical segment was called a reading stone,
- Certain lakespoison birds which fly over them.
Mr. Pratt's Patients, passage=My hopes wa'n't disappointed. I never saw clams thicker than they was along them inshore flats. I filled my dreener in no time, and then it come to me that 'twouldn't be a bad idee to get a lot more, take 'em with me to Wellmouth, and peddle 'em out. Clams was fairly scarce over that side of the bay and ought to fetch a fair price.}}
A punch in the gut, passage=Mostly, the microbiome is beneficial. It helps with digestion and enables people to extract a lot more calories from their food than would otherwise be possible. Research over the past few years, however, has implicated it in diseases from atherosclerosis to asthma to autism.}}
- Six diners in business clothes—five attractive young women and a balding middle-aged man—relax over cigarettes.
- Sunday had been my favorite day at Woodlawn. A long W.A.A. [="work as assigned" period], having coffee and croissants with Mark over the Sunday Times .
- Over meatloaf and mashed potatoes (being careful not to talk with his mouth full), Stanley told about his adventure.
Can China clean up fast enough?, passage=It has jailed environmental activists and is planning to limit the power of judicial oversight by handing a state-approved body a monopoly over bringing environmental lawsuits.}}
Usage notes
When used in the context of "from one location to another", over'' implies that the two places are at approximately the same height or the height difference is not relevant. For example, if two offices are on the same floor of a building, an office worker might say ''I'll bring that over''' for you'', while if the offices were on different floors, the sentence would likely be ''I'll bring that up [down] for you.'' However, distances are not constrained, e.g. ''He came '''over''' from England last year and now lives in Los Angeles'' or ''I moved the stapler '''over to the other side of my desk.Interjection
(en interjection)- How do you receive? Over !