Phrasal verb
flog off
Definition
phrasal verb. to sell something quickly or cheaply because you want to get rid of it.
phrasal verb. to dispose of assets or goods by selling them, often at a reduced price or in a hurried manner; carries a connotation of low quality or a desire to liquidate stock.
Examples
“He decided to flog off his old car for fifty pounds.”
“The company had to flog off its remaining inventory before the warehouse lease expired at the end of the month.”
“After the bankruptcy filing, the liquidators began to flog off the firm's intellectual property to the highest bidder in a series of private auctions.”
Examples
simple
“He decided to flog off his old car for fifty pounds.”
contextual
“The company had to flog off its remaining inventory before the warehouse lease expired at the end of the month.”
complex
“After the bankruptcy filing, the liquidators began to flog off the firm's intellectual property to the highest bidder in a series of private auctions.”
Usage
primarily British English; the object can go before or after the particle 'off'.
Teaching tip
contrast with 'sell' to show the negative or hurried nuance; 'flog' on its own means 'to sell' or 'to whip', but 'flog off' specifically implies disposal.
Pitfall
They flogged off to the customers their stock.
They flogged off their stock to the customers.
the direct object should follow the phrasal verb or come between the verb and particle, not after a prepositional phrase.
Phrasal verb
Particles
off
Separability
optional
Pattern
flog + off + object
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/flog-off