as in to kill time
to spend time doing nothing
returned home unannounced and found the au pair goofing off
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for goof (off)
Noun
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Creators Michael Jacobs and April Kelly imbued endless love into the life story of Cory Matthews (Ben Savage): a witty neurotic who grew from a slacker sixth grader into a full-on family man across the series seven seasons and 158 episodes on ABC.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
20 May 2025 -
The most compelling evidence to debunk the myth that parents are slackers comes from a work team study.—
Lieke ten Brummelhuis,
Forbes.com,
27 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The Athletic has a story filled with tables of draft picks by schools and conferences. USC immediately stands out as an underachiever.—
Stewart Mandel,
New York Times,
30 Apr. 2025
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Enough results had been collected to ensure the Championship’s perennial underachievers began the day sitting most comfortably but tension was still a travel companion on the 40-mile trip to the East Midlands.—
Nick Miller,
New York Times,
3 May 2025
Verb
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And while humans tend to veg out on the couch, canines typically only watch for short periods.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 May 2025
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Making the choice to be social is especially difficult at the end of an exhausting day when your impulse may be to veg out on the couch.—
Allie Volpe,
Vox,
7 Dec. 2018
Verb
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And this chaise lounge will be the ultimate spot to kick back, relax, and soak up the sun in style.—
Toni Sutton,
People.com,
17 May 2025
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Memorial Day ushers in the unofficial start of summer and gives us a little extra time to kick back with a book.—
Holly Corbett,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2025
Verb
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The corridor was branded as the 16th Street Mall and designed to compete with suburban development, a place to shop, dine, lounge around or walk to work.—
Aldo Svaldi,
Denver Post,
29 May 2025
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The boat staff is congenial and knowledgeable, so don’t hesitate to ask it about island history or to take a picture of you and your crew lounging on the deck.—
DeMarco Williams,
Forbes.com,
27 May 2025
Verb
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Most asteroids hang about in the Mars to Jupiter region, and the ones near Earth obviously hang about a bit closer.—
Dana Taylor,
USA TODAY,
2 Oct. 2024
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Most asteroids hang about in the Mars to Jupiter region, and the ones near Earth obviously hang about a bit closer.—
Dana Taylor,
USA TODAY,
2 Oct. 2024
Verb
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In the first chapter, blue morning light rests over waves crashing against a shoreline, and off into the distance, Yates rides a jet ski, almost comically unbothered by the chop of the sea.—
Lawrence Burney,
Pitchfork,
28 May 2025
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The art of resting is one that entrepreneurs often think is beneath them.—
Jodie Cook,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2025
Verb
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Get our daily newsletter Yet Mr Schwarzman avoids footling with life’s foot-soldiers for a reason.—
The Economist,
The Economist,
19 Sep. 2019
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Last year an American startup called Swarm Technologies paid a footling $900,000 fine for sending four tiny satellites into orbit on an Indian rocket, having been denied permission to do so by the US Federal Communications Commission.—
The Economist,
The Economist,
17 July 2019
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Cite this Entry
“Goof (off).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/goof%20%28off%29. Accessed 8 Jun. 2025.
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