brush-off
- noun
- /ˈbrʌʃˌɔf/
- Informal
- After his proposal was met with silence, he realized he had received the brush-off from her.
- gave him a brush-off
- a polite brush-off
- got the brush-off
Some might view the president's speech as a polite brush off rather than the offer or the acceptance of the employees offer.
- Some might view the president's speech as a polite brush off rather than the offer or the acceptance of the employees offer.
- The theme today is breakups and brush offs.
Examples
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I didn't expect to get the brush-off like that!
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Hey, what kind of a brush-off is this?
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Think I better give her the brush off.
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We're going to give her the brush off.
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Is that some kind of brush-off, Frank?
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I think I got the brush-off.
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The whole family is giving me the brush-off.
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I don't like getting the brush off!
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I know when i'm getting the brush-off.
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Then why the brush-off?
Synonyms
To ignore someone on purpose to show you dislike them
A quick unfriendly answer that ignores someone
Antonyms
How Dismissive
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Brush-off comes from the two simple words brush and off, like when you use a quick stroke to 'push away' dust from your shoulder. So a brush-off is a short, cold way to reject or ignore someone.