to melt off
1
4.1
- phrasal verb
- /mɛlt ɔf/
- Informal
- With regular exercise and healthy eating, the pounds can melt off without much effort.
- melt off the pounds
- melt off weight
Examples
-
Immediately, the weight started to melt off just as I had read that it would.
Blog text (12) -
He then tried the slow carb diet, and the weight melted off!
Blog text (8) -
After sticking to his diet, he noticed the weight starting to melt off gradually.
-
She was thrilled to see the weight melt off after just a few weeks of consistent workouts.
Synonyms
12
3.0
To lose weight and become thinner
12
3.4
Use up energy by physical activity
How Slim
Surface Forms
Morphology
The sense 'lose body weight as if it were melting away' follows a clear metaphorical extension of 'melt' (to disappear gradually) combined with 'off' (indicating removal), so a learner who knows both words can infer a general sense of something coming away gradually. However, mapping that general sense specifically to bodily weight is a metaphorical transfer rather than fully literal composition, so the relation is only partially predictable.
Etymology
Melt off gives a simple picture: the word melt and the word off suggest something turning to liquid and running away. Imagine fat or snow slowly melting and dripping off a surface, and you can see why melt off means 'to lose weight' slowly and noticeably.