take off

You remove something from your body or from a surface.

• Take off your hat.
• She took her glasses off to clean them.
• Can you take the cover off the chair?

How to use it: take off something / take something off (Take your wet jacket off.)

Similar words: remove

Opposites: put on

Common phrases: take off shoes, take off a coat, take something off

An aircraft or bird leaves the ground and starts flying.

• The plane is taking off.
• A duck took off from the pond.
• What time does our flight take off?

How to use it: take off from somewhere (The helicopter took off from the roof.)

Similar words: lift off

Opposites: land

Common phrases: take off safely, take off from somewhere, take off on time

Something starts to become very successful or popular, often quickly.

• Her business is taking off.
• His career took off after his first film.
• Do you think this new idea will take off?

Similar words: flourish, boom, catch on

Opposites: fail

Common phrases: take off quickly, really take off, take off worldwide

To leave the place where you are.

• I need to take off now.
• She took off before lunch.
• Are you taking off already?

Similar words: leave, head off

Common phrases: take off early, take off now

A surfer stands on the board and starts riding a wave as it breaks.

• The surfer took off smoothly.
• He fell just as he was taking off on the wave.
• Try to take off before the wave becomes too steep.

How to use it: take off on a wave (She took off on the first wave she caught.)

Similar words: start riding a wave

Common phrases: take off smoothly, take off too late, take off on waves

To use building plans to calculate how much material a construction job needs.

• We need to take off the concrete quantities.
• The estimator took off the materials from the plans.
• Have you taken off the steel for this project?

How to use it: take off something (We must take off the steel quantities before ordering.)

Similar words: quantify, measure

Common phrases: take off quantities, take off materials