ENGLISH
REFERENCE

front off

phr. v..
C1 Advanced Oxford American English Informal Slang

phr. v.. to act tough or pretend to be more confident than you really are to impress or scare someone.

phr. v.. to adopt a confrontational or boastful posture, often as a defensive mechanism or to project a false sense of status; frequently used in urban or hip-hop contexts.


SIMPLE

He is just fronting off to look cool for his friends.

CONTEXTUAL

Don't front off with me because I know you don't actually have the money.

COMPLEX

The young man began fronting off when the rival group entered the club, though his posturing was clearly a mask for his anxiety.

Particles
off
Separability
inseparable
Pattern
front + off
Usage

highly informal and often used in the context of social status or street culture.

Teaching tip

this is a variation of the simpler phrasal verb 'front'; the addition of 'off' adds a sense of directed energy or a specific instance of the behavior.

Pitfall

He fronted off his wealth.He was fronting off about his wealth.the verb is usually intransitive or used with 'about' or 'with'; you don't 'front off' an object like a possession.

© 2026 English Reference