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Glite Dictionary
to eff off

to eff off

9.9
A rude way to tell someone to go away without the real swear word
  • phrasal verb
  • /ɛf ɔf/
  • Offensive
translation icon : mandar a alguien a la mierda
  • Why don't you eff off with your stupidity?

Examples

  • Oh, and my fave, the right-wingers want the left-wingers to eff off as this is not any of their business.

    Blog text (24)

  • After all his annoying comments, she finally said, 'Just eff off and leave me alone!'

  • If he doesn't stop pestering me, I will just tell him to eff off.

  • When the rude customer kept complaining, the manager simply told him to eff off.

Synonyms

to fuck off
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
104 9.9

Leave or tell someone to leave in a rude way

conveys the same force but replaces the explicit expletive with a euphemism
to shove it
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
38 9.9

Tell someone angrily to go away and that you will not accept their idea

focuses on the same angry dismissal but without using open vulgarity
to go fuck oneself
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
37 9.9

A rude way to tell someone to go away and show strong anger

matches the intensity but avoids explicit obscene phrasing
to buzz off
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
12 8.4

To tell someone to go away right away in a rude or angry way

is similarly direct but carries a ruder, euphemistic tone
to shove off
vsto eff off
  • Informal
12 7.7

Leave a place quickly, often in a rude way

has the same dismissive aim but avoids explicit vulgar expression
to bugger off
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
12 9.9

Tell someone to go away immediately in a rude way

matches that rudeness but keeps language euphemistic rather than explicit
to bug off
vsto eff off
  • Informal
4 8.9

Tell someone to go away and leave you alone

shares that directness but uses an evasive euphemism instead of vulgar words
to screw off
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
3 9.5

To tell someone rudely to go away or to stop working and relax

is aimed at the same dismissal but avoids crude expressions
to sod off
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
3 9.9

Tell someone to go away in a rude way

is similar in force but phrased to avoid explicit swear words
to kiss off
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
2 8.7

Reject someone or something rudely and tell them to go away

is equally forceful but expressed without explicit vulgarity
to get stuffed
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
2 9.9

Tell someone rudely to go away or leave you alone

says the same but uses a euphemistic form rather than rude language
to frig off
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
1 9.9

To tell someone rudely to go away and leave you alone

expresses the same anger but uses a cleaner, euphemistic form
foxtrot oscar
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
9.9

A rude slang phrase that tells someone to go away angrily

is similarly rude but avoids any explicit vulgar word
to cock off
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
9.9

To tell someone to go away using rude language

is equally dismissive but keeps the exact vulgar words out
to tell someone where to shove it
vsto eff off
  • Offensive
9.9

Rudely say to someone that you want them to go away

does the same rejecting action but in a euphemistic, less explicit form

Antonyms

to stay
∞ 1.0

To remain in one place and not leave

How Rude

to fuck off
  • Offensive
104 9.9
to eff off
  • Offensive
9.9
to go away
709 1.0
leave-taking
  • Formal
1 7.0

Surface Forms

eff off infinitive
effed off past
effed off past participle
effing off present participle
effs off third person singular

Morphology

eff + off

If a learner knows 'eff' as a euphemistic stand‑in for the verb 'fuck' and 'off' meaning away/remove, they can reasonably infer the imperative meaning 'go away' because verb + off commonly encodes movement or dismissal. However, the expression is a rude, euphemistic idiom whose force and register (and the non‑literal use of 'eff') are not fully predictable from the parts, so it is only partially transparent.

Etymology

Eff off is a polite way to write a rude phrase: eff stands in for a rude word that starts with 'F'. The word off gives the idea of leaving, so the whole expression means 'go away' or 'stop bothering someone'.