# take off

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/take-off
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 1. to remove clothing

phrasal verb · CEFR A2

to remove a piece of clothing from your body.

For teachers: to remove a garment or accessory from the body.

- Please take off your shoes before you walk on the new carpet.
- He took his heavy winter coat off as soon as he entered the heated lobby, draping it over his arm while he waited for the lift.

Usage: The object can go between 'take' and 'off' or after 'off'.

### 2. plane leaving the ground

phrasal verb · CEFR A2

when an aircraft leaves the ground and starts to fly.

For teachers: to leave the ground and begin flight.

- The plane took off on time despite the heavy rain and wind.
- The pilot waited for clearance from the tower before accelerating down the runway to take off into the overcast morning sky.

Usage: This sense is always intransitive and cannot take an object.

### 3. to become successful

phrasal verb · CEFR B1

to suddenly become very successful or popular.

For teachers: to experience a sudden and rapid increase in popularity, success, or progress.

- Her career really took off after she won the national singing contest.
- The new social media platform took off almost overnight, attracting millions of active users within its first month of release.

### 4. time away from work

phrasal verb · CEFR B1

to spend time away from work or study, usually with permission.

For teachers: to absent oneself from work or regular duties for a period of time.

- I'm planning to take two days off next week to visit my parents.
- She decided to take a sabbatical off to travel through South America and focus on her photography project.

Usage: Usually takes a time period as the object (e.g., 'take a week off').

### 5. to leave suddenly

phrasal verb · CEFR B2 · Informal

to leave a place suddenly or quickly.

For teachers: to depart a location, often abruptly or in a hurry.

- As soon as the meeting ended, he took off without saying goodbye.
- The suspect took off down a narrow alleyway the moment he spotted the patrol car turning the corner.

### 6. to imitate someone

phrasal verb · CEFR C1 · British English · Humorous

to copy the way someone speaks or behaves to make people laugh.

For teachers: to mimic or lampoon someone's speech or mannerisms, typically for comedic effect.

- He is great at taking off the prime minister's posh accent.
- The comedian's routine relied heavily on his ability to take off various Hollywood celebrities with uncanny vocal precision.

Teaching tip: This sense is much more common in British English than American English.

## Examples

- The plane takes off at six in the morning.
- After the meeting ended, he took off without saying goodbye to anyone.
- The startup's valuation took off following the successful launch of their flagship application in the European market.

## Usage notes

- Teaching tip: this is a polysemous phrasal verb; focus first on the literal 'airplane' sense before introducing the 'remove clothing' or 'sudden success' meanings.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.