You may put off a meeting until Friday, while an unpleasant experience may put you off returning to a place. The same phrasal verb expresses different ideas depending on what follows it.
Put off commonly means to delay something, cause someone to lose interest, or avoid dealing with a person. It may also describe something that distracts you from a task.
Learning these meanings with their grammar patterns will help you choose the correct object position and avoid errors such as put off it or putted off.
What Does “Put Off” Mean?
Put off most commonly means to delay an event, decision, or action until a later time.
It may also mean:
- To cause someone to dislike something
- To discourage someone from doing something
- To make someone wait instead of dealing with them
- To distract someone from an activity
The intended meaning depends on the object and the surrounding context.
| Grammar pattern | Meaning |
|---|---|
| put something off | postpone something |
| put off doing something | delay taking an action |
| put somebody off | cause dislike, discouragement, or distraction |
| put somebody off something | make someone lose interest in something |
| put somebody off doing something | discourage someone from taking an action |
| be put off by something | experience dislike or discouragement |
| put somebody off with something | make someone wait by giving an excuse or temporary response |
Meaning 1: Delay or Postpone Something
The most common meaning of put off is to arrange for something to happen later than originally planned.
Pattern: Put Something Off
The object may be an event, task, decision, appointment, or other planned activity.
The committee put the final vote off until Thursday.
Because this use is separable, a noun object may appear before or after off:
The committee put the final vote off.
The committee put off the final vote.
Both sentences are correct.
A personal pronoun must go between put and off:
Correct: The committee put it off.
Incorrect: The committee put off it.
Pattern: Put Off Doing Something
An -ing form may follow put off when the delayed item is an action.
Jonah put off renewing his licence until the final week.
Other common combinations include:
- put off making a decision
- put off answering an email
- put off starting a project
- put off visiting a doctor
- put off discussing a problem
Do not use an infinitive after put off in this meaning.
Correct: We put off signing the agreement.
Incorrect: We put off to sign the agreement.
The base form, past tense, and past participle are all put, while the present participle is putting.
Meaning 2: Cause Someone to Dislike Something
Put off may describe something that creates dislike, discomfort, or a loss of interest.
Pattern: Put Somebody Off
The object is the person who experiences the negative reaction.
The salesperson’s impatient tone put several customers off.
You may also place a noun object after the particle:
The salesperson’s impatient tone put off several customers.
With a pronoun, the object must appear in the middle:
Correct: The impatient tone put them off.
Incorrect: The impatient tone put off them.
Pattern: Put Somebody Off Something
You may name the thing that the person begins to dislike.
The bitter aftertaste put Anika off the medicine.
Here:
- Anika is the person affected.
- The medicine is the thing she became reluctant to take.
Another common pattern is:
put somebody off their food
This means to make someone lose the desire to eat.
Passive Pattern: Be Put Off by Something
This meaning often appears in the passive voice.
Several guests were put off by the confusing entrance signs.
The active version places the cause first:
The confusing entrance signs put several guests off.
The two sentences describe the same reaction from different perspectives.
| Active voice | Passive voice |
|---|---|
| The cluttered layout put visitors off. | Visitors were put off by the cluttered layout. |
| The unexpected fee put buyers off. | Buyers were put off by the unexpected fee. |
Meaning 3: Discourage Someone From Doing Something
Something may put you off doing something when it makes you less willing to take that action.
Pattern: Put Somebody Off Doing Something
The complicated application process put Mira off applying for the grant.
The structure is:
cause + put + person + off + -ing form
In this sentence:
- The complicated application process is the cause.
- Mira is the affected person.
- Applying for the grant is the discouraged action.
More examples of the pattern include:
- put someone off travelling alone
- put someone off accepting an offer
- put someone off joining a course
- put someone off speaking in public
Do not add from after put off in this construction.
Correct: The cost put us off booking the venue.
Incorrect: The cost put us off from booking the venue.
The expression dissuade someone from doing something has a similar meaning, but it follows a different structure:
The cost dissuaded us from booking the venue.
This difference matters when replacing put off with a single-word alternative.
Meaning 4: Make Someone Wait or Avoid Dealing With Them
Put somebody off may mean to delay giving someone an answer, service, payment, or attention.
The claims department put the customer off for three weeks without explaining the delay.
The person is kept waiting rather than dealt with immediately.
This meaning often appears when someone uses:
- An excuse
- A vague promise
- An incomplete answer
- A request to return later
- A temporary explanation
Pattern: Put Somebody Off With Something
The contractor put the homeowner off with another vague promise.
The expression may suggest that the delay is intentional or unfair.
Collins and Merriam-Webster both record the sense of inducing someone to wait or postponing dealing with them.
Meaning 5: Distract Someone
In another use, put somebody off means to break someone’s concentration or make an activity more difficult.
The conversation behind her put Layla off while she was counting the cash.
This meaning is less central than postpone or discourage, but it appears in British and general English usage.
You may also see:
Don’t talk to him while he is serving. You’ll put him off.
The object is the person whose concentration is affected.
Is “Put Off” Separable?
Put off is separable, but the exact structure depends on its meaning.
When the Object Is a Thing
With the postponement meaning, a noun object may usually appear in either position:
They put the inspection off.
They put off the inspection.
A pronoun must appear in the middle:
They put it off.
When the Object Is a Person
When put off means to discourage, repel, distract, or make someone wait, the person may appear between the verb and particle:
The warning put Sam off.
The interruptions put her off.
A noun object may sometimes follow the particle:
The warning put off several applicants.
However, placing the affected person between put and off is often clearer, especially when more information follows:
The warning put several applicants off accepting the role.
When an Action Follows
Use an -ing form:
The shortage put the organisers off expanding the event.
Do not say:
The shortage put the organisers off to expand the event.
Forms of “Put Off”
The verb put is irregular. Its base form, past tense, and past participle have the same spelling.
| Verb form | Phrasal verb | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Base form | put off | Try not to put off the repair. |
| Third-person singular | puts off | The extra paperwork puts off some applicants. |
| Simple past | put off | The school put off the trip yesterday. |
| Past participle | put off | The hearing has been put off twice. |
| Present participle | putting off | She is putting off an important conversation. |
Common Form Error
Correct: The organisers put off the opening.
Incorrect: The organisers putted off the opening.
The past form of put is put, not putted.
“Put Off” in Active and Passive Sentences
The postponement and dislike meanings both occur in active and passive constructions.
Postponement
Active:
The council put the public consultation off until September.
Passive:
The public consultation was put off until September.
The passive version focuses on the delayed event rather than the person or organisation responsible.
Dislike or Discouragement
Active:
The aggressive advertising put potential subscribers off.
Passive:
Potential subscribers were put off by the aggressive advertising.
The passive structure be put off by is particularly common when describing a person’s reaction.
“Put Off” vs. Similar Words
The best alternative depends on which meaning of put off is intended.
| Word or expression | Main meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| postpone | arrange for something to happen later | The organisers postponed the parade. |
| delay | cause something to happen later than expected | Heavy traffic delayed the delivery. |
| procrastinate | repeatedly avoid doing something that should be done | He procrastinated instead of preparing the report. |
| deter | discourage someone from acting | The warning deterred hikers from using the path. |
| dissuade | persuade someone not to do something | Her adviser dissuaded her from signing immediately. |
| repel | create a strong feeling of dislike | The chemical smell repelled prospective tenants. |
| distract | take someone’s attention away | The flashing notification distracted the driver. |
Put Off vs. Postpone
Put off and postpone are close in the delay meaning.
They put off the interview.
They postponed the interview.
Both mean that the interview was moved to a later time.
Postpone is often more formal. Put off is common in both speech and general writing.
Put Off vs. Procrastinate
Put off describes delaying a particular task or event:
I put off replying until Monday.
Procrastinate describes a broader habit or act of delaying something that should be done:
I procrastinated all afternoon instead of replying.
You may put something off for a valid practical reason. Procrastinate often implies avoidable or unproductive delay.
Put Off vs. Deter
Put somebody off doing something and deter somebody from doing something may express similar ideas.
The poor reviews put us off ordering the device.
The poor reviews deterred us from ordering the device.
The grammar patterns differ:
- put somebody off doing something
- deter somebody from doing something
Put Off vs. Cancel
To put something off is usually to move it to a later time.
To cancel something is to decide that it will not happen.
The match was put off until Saturday.
The match is still expected to take place.
The match was cancelled.
The match will not take place unless a new arrangement is made.
What Does “Off-Putting” Mean?
Off-putting is an adjective meaning unpleasant, discouraging, or likely to make someone dislike or avoid something.
The hotel’s unexplained service charges were off-putting.
The adjective is normally hyphenated:
Correct: an off-putting manner
Incorrect: an off putting manner
Compare the phrasal verb and adjective:
| Form | Word class | Example |
|---|---|---|
| put off | phrasal verb | The unfriendly response put me off. |
| off-putting | adjective | The response was off-putting. |
Merriam-Webster defines off-putting as repellent or disconcerting, while Collins describes it as a quality that makes someone dislike something or avoid becoming involved.
Common Mistakes With “Put Off”
Mistake 1: Placing a Pronoun After the Particle
Incorrect: We put off it until next month.
Correct: We put it off until next month.
A personal pronoun must separate put and off.
Mistake 2: Using an Infinitive After the Delay Meaning
Incorrect: Naomi put off to speak to her supervisor.
Correct: Naomi put off speaking to her supervisor.
Use an -ing form after put off when referring to a delayed action.
Mistake 3: Adding “From” Before an -ing Form
Incorrect: The long journey put them off from attending.
Correct: The long journey put them off attending.
Use from with alternatives such as deter or dissuade, not with this put off pattern.
Mistake 4: Using “Putted” as the Past Form
Incorrect: The clinic putted off my appointment.
Correct: The clinic put off my appointment.
The past form remains put.
Mistake 5: Confusing Postponement With Cancellation
The lecture was put off until Wednesday.
This means it was postponed.
The lecture was cancelled.
This means it will not happen as planned.
Mistake 6: Leaving the Meaning Unclear
A sentence such as:
The smell put Alex off.
is grammatical, but the context must show what Alex began to dislike or avoid.
A more precise sentence would be:
The smell put Alex off eating in the kitchen.
Final Point
The meaning of put off depends on its structure.
- Put something off means to postpone it.
- Put somebody off something means to create dislike.
- Put somebody off doing something means to discourage the action.
- Put somebody off with an excuse means to make the person wait.
Record the complete pattern with each meaning. This will help you choose the correct object position and understand the expression accurately in different contexts.
FAQs About “Put Off”
What does “put off” mean in simple words?
Put off usually means to delay something until later. It may also mean to make someone dislike something, discourage an action, distract a person, or make someone wait instead of dealing with them.
Is “put off” separable?
Yes. With a noun object, you may say put the meeting off or put off the meeting. A personal pronoun must go between the two words: put it off, not put off it.
What is the past tense of “put off”?
The past tense is put off. The verb put does not change in the past tense. For example: The organisers put off the event yesterday.
What does “putting someone off” mean?
It may mean causing someone to dislike something, discouraging them from acting, distracting them, or making them wait. The surrounding words reveal which meaning is intended.
Is “put off” formal or informal?
Put off is common in everyday and neutral English. Postpone may be preferred in more formal announcements, but put off is also acceptable in many professional contexts.
What is the difference between “put off” and “off-putting”?
Put off is a phrasal verb: The smell put me off. Off-putting is an adjective describing something unpleasant or discouraging: The smell was off-putting.
Can “put off” be followed by an -ing form?
Yes. Use an -ing form when referring to a delayed or discouraged action: put off leaving or put someone off applying. Do not use an infinitive such as put off to leave.
The First English Grade Editorial Team creates simple English grammar, vocabulary, and language guides for students, beginners, and everyday learners.