Don’t use ‘of ’ in front of a personal pronoun such as ‘me’, ‘him’, or ‘them’ when you are talking about possession. Don’t say, for example, ‘
of cou rse ◆◆◆
1 ADV You say of course to suggest that something is normal, obvious, or well-known, and should therefore not surprise the person you are talking to. [SPOKEN ] □ Of course there were lots of other interesting things at the exhibition. □ 'I have read about you in the newspapers of course,' Charlie said. □ The only honest answer is, of course, yes.
2 CONVENTION You use of course as a polite way of giving permission. [SPOKEN , FORMULAE ] □ 'Can I just say something about the cup game on Saturday?'—'Yes of course you can.' □ 'Could I see these documents?'—'Of course.'
3 ADV You use of course in order to emphasize a statement that you are making, especially when you are agreeing or disagreeing with someone. [SPOKEN , EMPHASIS ] □ 'I expect you're right.'—'Of course I'm right.'. □ 'You will strictly observe your diet.'—'Of course.'
4 CONVENTION Of course not is an emphatic way of saying no. [SPOKEN , EMPHASIS ] □ 'You're not really seriously considering this thing, are you?'—'No, of course not.'
off ◆◆◆ The preposition is pronounced /ɒf, [AM ] ɔːf/. The adverb is pronounced /ɒ f, [AM ] ɔː f/ In addition to the uses shown below, off is used after some verbs and nouns in order to introduce extra information. Off is also used in phrasal verbs such as 'get off', 'pair off', and 'sleep off'. 1 PREP If something is taken off something else or moves off it, it is no longer touching that thing. □ He took his feet off the desk. □ I took the key for the room off a rack above her head. □ Hugh wiped the rest of the blood off his face with his handkerchief. ● ADV [ADV after v] Off is also an adverb. □ Lee broke off a small piece of orange and held it out to him. □ His exhaust fell off six laps from the finish.
2 PREP When you get off a bus, train, or plane, you come out of it or leave it after you have been travelling on it. □ Don't try to get on or off a moving train! □ As he stepped off the aeroplane, he was shot dead. ● ADV [ADV after v] Off is also an adverb. □ At the next stop the man got off too and introduced himself.
3 PREP If you keep off a street or piece of land, you do not step on it or go there. □ Locking up men does nothing more than keep them off the streets. □ The local police had warned visitors to keep off the beach at night. ● ADV Off is also an adverb. □ …a sign saying 'Keep Off'.
4 PREP If something is situated off a place such as a coast, room, or road, it is near to it or next to it, but not exactly in it. □ The boat was anchored off the northern coast of the peninsula. □ Lily lives in a penthouse just off Park Avenue.
5 ADV [ADV after v, be ADV , oft ADV -ing] If you go off , you leave a place. □ He was just about to drive off when the secretary came running out. □ She gave a hurried wave and set off across the grass. □ She was off again. Last year she had been to Kenya. This year it was Goa. □ When his master's off traveling, Caleb stays with Pierre's parents.
6 ADV [ADV after v] When you take off clothing or jewellery that you are wearing, you remove it from your body. □ He took off his spectacles and rubbed frantically at the lens. □ He hastily stripped off his old uniform and began pulling on the new one.
7 ADV [oft be ADV ] If you have time off or a particular day off, you do not go to work or school, for example because you are ill or it is a day when you do not usually work. □ The rest of the men had the day off. □ She was sacked for demanding Saturdays off. □ I'm off tomorrow. □ The average worker was off sick 27 days last year. ● PREP Off is also a preposition. □ He could not get time off work to go on holiday.
8 PREP If you keep off a subject, you deliberately avoid talking about it. □ Keep off the subject of politics. □ Keep the conversation off linguistic matters.
9 ADV [be ADV , ADV after v] If something such as an agreement or a sporting event is off , it is cancelled. □ Until Pointon is completely happy, however, the deal's off. □ Greenpeace refused to call off the event.
10 PREP If someone is off something harmful such as a drug, they have stopped taking or using it. □ She was taken off antibiotics and given pain killers.
11 PREP If you are off something, you have stopped liking it. □ I'm off coffee at the moment. □ Diarrhoea can make you feel weak, as well as putting you off your food.
12 ADV [be ADV , ADV after v] When something such as a machine or electric light is off , it is not functioning or in use. When you switch it off , you stop it functioning. □ As he pulled into the driveway, he saw her bedroom light was off. □ We used sail power and turned the engine off to save our fuel. □ The microphones had been switched off.
13 PREP If there is money off something, its price is reduced by the amount specified. □ …Simons Leatherwear, 37 Old Christchurch Road. 20 per cent off all jackets this Saturday. □ …discounts offering thousands of pounds off the normal price of a car. ● ADV [ADV after v, v-link ADV ] Off is also an adverb. □ I'm prepared to knock five hundred pounds off but no more.
14 ADV If something is a long way off , it is a long distance away from you. □ Florida was a long way off. □ Below you, though still 50 miles off, is the most treeless stretch of land imaginable.