"fob off" meaning in English

See fob off in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Verb

Forms: fobs off [present, singular, third-person], fobbing off [participle, present], fobbed off [participle, past], fobbed off [past]
Head templates: {{en-verb|*}} fob off (third-person singular simple present fobs off, present participle fobbing off, simple past and past participle fobbed off)
  1. (informal, transitive) To use lies, excuses, or deceit to satisfy someone; to deceitfully appease someone by giving something that is spurious or inferior from what was wanted or expected. Tags: informal, transitive
    Sense id: en-fob_off-en-verb-mvXWsAiZ
  2. (informal, transitive) To fraudulently dispose of (goods). Tags: informal, transitive Synonyms: fub off [archaic] Synonyms (to fraudulently dispose of): foist, pass off, palm off, pawn off Translations (to put off by evasion): afschepen met (Dutch), hämätä (Finnish), harhauttaa (Finnish), abwimmeln (German), avspisa (Swedish)
    Sense id: en-fob_off-en-verb-HAZZLMMR Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, English phrasal verbs formed with "off", Entries with translation boxes, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Terms with Dutch translations, Terms with Finnish translations, Terms with German translations, Terms with Swedish translations Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 27 73 Disambiguation of English phrasal verbs formed with "off": 24 76 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 17 83 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 20 80 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 14 86 Disambiguation of Terms with Dutch translations: 23 77 Disambiguation of Terms with Finnish translations: 26 74 Disambiguation of Terms with German translations: 24 76 Disambiguation of Terms with Swedish translations: 27 73 Disambiguation of 'to fraudulently dispose of': 3 97 Disambiguation of 'to put off by evasion': 40 60

Inflected forms

Alternative forms

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "fobs off",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fobbing off",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fobbed off",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fobbed off",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "*"
      },
      "expansion": "fob off (third-person singular simple present fobs off, present participle fobbing off, simple past and past participle fobbed off)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "When I phoned up, I was fobbed off with a string of excuses.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "c. 1608–1609 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Coriolanus”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:",
          "text": "You must not think to fob off our disgrace ; but, an't please you, deliver.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1641 May, John Milton, Of Reformation Touching Church-Discipline in England: And the Cavvses that hitherto have Hindred it; republished as Will Taliaferro Hale, editor, Of Reformation Touching Church-Discipline in England (Yale Studies in English; LIV), New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1916, →OCLC:",
          "text": "A conspiracy of bishops could prostrate and fob off the right of the people.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2018 December 20, Liz Pain, “Letters: The complex issue of big game trophy hunting”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:",
          "text": "Let’s not be fobbed off by the lie that trophy hunting is promoting conservation of these endangered species.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2020 August 4, Richard Conniff, “They may look goofy, but ostriches are nobody’s fool”, in National Geographic Magazine:",
          "text": "Other species have evolved elaborate defenses to deter “brood parasites,” birds that try to fob off the tedious work of parenting by slipping their eggs into other birds’ nests.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To use lies, excuses, or deceit to satisfy someone; to deceitfully appease someone by giving something that is spurious or inferior from what was wanted or expected."
      ],
      "id": "en-fob_off-en-verb-mvXWsAiZ",
      "links": [
        [
          "lie",
          "lie"
        ],
        [
          "excuses",
          "excuses"
        ],
        [
          "deceit",
          "deceit"
        ],
        [
          "satisfy",
          "satisfy"
        ],
        [
          "deceitfully",
          "deceitfully"
        ],
        [
          "appease",
          "appease"
        ],
        [
          "spurious",
          "spurious"
        ],
        [
          "inferior",
          "inferior"
        ],
        [
          "expected",
          "expected"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(informal, transitive) To use lies, excuses, or deceit to satisfy someone; to deceitfully appease someone by giving something that is spurious or inferior from what was wanted or expected."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "informal",
        "transitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "27 73",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "24 76",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English phrasal verbs formed with \"off\"",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "17 83",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "20 80",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "14 86",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "23 77",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Dutch translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "26 74",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Finnish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "24 76",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with German translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "27 73",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Swedish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "He fobbed off the forgery as genuine.",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To fraudulently dispose of (goods)."
      ],
      "id": "en-fob_off-en-verb-HAZZLMMR",
      "links": [
        [
          "fraudulently",
          "fraudulently"
        ],
        [
          "dispose",
          "dispose"
        ],
        [
          "goods",
          "goods"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(informal, transitive) To fraudulently dispose of (goods)."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "_dis1": "3 97",
          "sense": "to fraudulently dispose of",
          "word": "foist"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "3 97",
          "sense": "to fraudulently dispose of",
          "word": "pass off"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "3 97",
          "sense": "to fraudulently dispose of",
          "word": "palm off"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "3 97",
          "sense": "to fraudulently dispose of",
          "word": "pawn off"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "32 68",
          "tags": [
            "archaic"
          ],
          "word": "fub off"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "informal",
        "transitive"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "40 60",
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "to put off by evasion",
          "word": "afschepen met"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "40 60",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "to put off by evasion",
          "word": "hämätä"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "40 60",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "to put off by evasion",
          "word": "harhauttaa"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "40 60",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "to put off by evasion",
          "word": "abwimmeln"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "40 60",
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "to put off by evasion",
          "word": "avspisa"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "fob off"
}
{
  "categories": [
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    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English phrasal verbs",
    "English phrasal verbs formed with \"off\"",
    "English verbs",
    "Entries with translation boxes",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Terms with Dutch translations",
    "Terms with Finnish translations",
    "Terms with German translations",
    "Terms with Swedish translations"
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "fobs off",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fobbing off",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fobbed off",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fobbed off",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "*"
      },
      "expansion": "fob off (third-person singular simple present fobs off, present participle fobbing off, simple past and past participle fobbed off)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English informal terms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "English transitive verbs"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "When I phoned up, I was fobbed off with a string of excuses.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "c. 1608–1609 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Coriolanus”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:",
          "text": "You must not think to fob off our disgrace ; but, an't please you, deliver.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1641 May, John Milton, Of Reformation Touching Church-Discipline in England: And the Cavvses that hitherto have Hindred it; republished as Will Taliaferro Hale, editor, Of Reformation Touching Church-Discipline in England (Yale Studies in English; LIV), New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1916, →OCLC:",
          "text": "A conspiracy of bishops could prostrate and fob off the right of the people.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2018 December 20, Liz Pain, “Letters: The complex issue of big game trophy hunting”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:",
          "text": "Let’s not be fobbed off by the lie that trophy hunting is promoting conservation of these endangered species.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2020 August 4, Richard Conniff, “They may look goofy, but ostriches are nobody’s fool”, in National Geographic Magazine:",
          "text": "Other species have evolved elaborate defenses to deter “brood parasites,” birds that try to fob off the tedious work of parenting by slipping their eggs into other birds’ nests.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To use lies, excuses, or deceit to satisfy someone; to deceitfully appease someone by giving something that is spurious or inferior from what was wanted or expected."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "lie",
          "lie"
        ],
        [
          "excuses",
          "excuses"
        ],
        [
          "deceit",
          "deceit"
        ],
        [
          "satisfy",
          "satisfy"
        ],
        [
          "deceitfully",
          "deceitfully"
        ],
        [
          "appease",
          "appease"
        ],
        [
          "spurious",
          "spurious"
        ],
        [
          "inferior",
          "inferior"
        ],
        [
          "expected",
          "expected"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(informal, transitive) To use lies, excuses, or deceit to satisfy someone; to deceitfully appease someone by giving something that is spurious or inferior from what was wanted or expected."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "informal",
        "transitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English informal terms",
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "English transitive verbs"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "He fobbed off the forgery as genuine.",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To fraudulently dispose of (goods)."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "fraudulently",
          "fraudulently"
        ],
        [
          "dispose",
          "dispose"
        ],
        [
          "goods",
          "goods"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(informal, transitive) To fraudulently dispose of (goods)."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "informal",
        "transitive"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "sense": "to fraudulently dispose of",
      "word": "foist"
    },
    {
      "sense": "to fraudulently dispose of",
      "word": "pass off"
    },
    {
      "sense": "to fraudulently dispose of",
      "word": "palm off"
    },
    {
      "sense": "to fraudulently dispose of",
      "word": "pawn off"
    },
    {
      "tags": [
        "archaic"
      ],
      "word": "fub off"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "to put off by evasion",
      "word": "afschepen met"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "to put off by evasion",
      "word": "hämätä"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "to put off by evasion",
      "word": "harhauttaa"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "to put off by evasion",
      "word": "abwimmeln"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "to put off by evasion",
      "word": "avspisa"
    }
  ],
  "word": "fob off"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-12-03 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-11-21 using wiktextract (94ba7e1 and 5dea2a6). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.