FIGHT OFF

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does fight off mean? 

• FIGHT OFF (verb)
  The verb FIGHT OFF has 1 sense:

1. force or drive back

  Familiarity information: FIGHT OFF used as a verb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• FIGHT OFF (verb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Force or drive back

Classified under:

Verbs of fighting, athletic activities

Synonyms:

drive back; fight off; rebuff; repel; repulse

Context example:

rebuff the attack

Hypernyms (to "fight off" is one way to...):

defend; fight; fight back; fight down; oppose (fight against or resist strongly)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody

 Context examples 

Even with a broken arm he might pull the fight off, as men have done before.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Bone marrow, the spongy tissue inside most of our bones, produces red blood cells as well as immune cells that help fight off infections and heal injuries.

(Researchers unearth secret tunnels between the skull and the brain, National Institutes of Health)

They help fight off infections and play a role in your body's immune response.

(Eosinophilic Disorders, NIH)

While inflammation is a natural response necessary to fight off infection, chronic inflammation – which may result from psychological stress as well as lifestyle factors such as smoking, excessive alcohol intake, physical inactivity and obesity – is harmful.

(Inflammation links heart disease and depression, University of Cambridge)

"That's my good girl. You do try to fight off your shyness, and I love you for it. Fighting faults isn't easy, as I know, and a cheery word kind of gives a lift. Thank you, Mother," And Jo gave the thin cheek a grateful kiss, more precious to Mrs. March than if it had given back the rosy roundness of her youth.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

He was walking ahead of me along Fifth Avenue in his alert, aggressive way, his hands out a little from his body as if to fight off interference, his head moving sharply here and there, adapting itself to his restless eyes.

(The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald)