to bear off
1
7.0
- phrasal verb
:
llevarse
- After the game, the fans began to bear off the decorations from the stands.
All of them have been borne off by the light, and the light is the light of enlightenment.
- All of them have been borne off by the light, and the light is the light of enlightenment.
Examples
-
She managed to bear off the heavy boxes to the moving truck.
-
When we left our concealment, we came away side by side with the Fire Zouaves, the 79th, and others, who were bearing off their killed and wounded.
Blog text (8) -
Thus was Honour Hitchens, by her courage, enabled to bear off her daddy in triumph amid the cheers and rejoicings of half the women and boys of the neighborhood.
Academic text (1998) -
The firefighter will bear off the injured person to safety.
Synonyms
795
2.3
To remove something from a place or reduce something important, for example a right
88
3.5
To move people or things away, sometimes because of strong feeling
5
4.1
To take something away using a truck or van
4
5.9
To take someone or something away by vehicle, often quickly and without care
4
4.4
To take a person to another place or to move someone's feelings suddenly
Move a person or thing from one place into a different state, often by force
Antonyms
How Far
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to remove or carry someone or something away' follows directly from combining 'bear' (to carry) with the particle 'off' (away), so the overall sense is transparently compositional. This verb+particle motion pattern is common across languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Bear off comes from the old use of bear meaning 'to carry' and off meaning 'away'. Picture people lifting a chest and carrying it away from a place, so they bear off the chest. That's why it means 'to take or move something away'.