lift off

Idioms

Begin flight, as in The spacecraft was due to lift off at ten o'clock. The off in this idiom means “off the ground.” [Late 1800s]

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

As the ice thinned, this smooth foundation allowed large sections to lift off the ground and float, triggering an unusual and sudden calving event.

From Science Daily

But the engines are capable of recovering energy at 350kw, and do so when a driver has lifted off the throttle.

From BBC

When outages drag on for hours, the back-up batteries don't have time to recharge, forcing Biletsky to cut the lift off to prioritise water pumps.

From Barron's

That might change now and, when he got his first goal, it was like the weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

From BBC

There are four ways of recovering energy: under braking; revving the engine in corners; lifting off early before a corner and harvesting while still on full throttle.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023