work off

verb

To lose (weight) by doing physical work; to burn off the calories gained from eating something.

“We need to get moving to work off these donuts.”

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Meanings

verbwork off (third-person singular simple present works off, present participle working off, simple past and past participle worked off)

present singular third person works off · participle present working off · participle past worked off · past worked off

  1. transitiveTo lose (weight) by doing physical work; to burn off the calories gained from eating something.

    We need to get moving to work off these donuts.

  2. broadlytransitiveTo end (a debt) by doing labor for the person owed money.

    After thirteen years, I've worked off my student debt.

  3. archaictransitiveTo produce (printed matter etc.) by some process of work.

    Pale Colour. When the sheets are worked off with too little ink.

    1774, Philip Luckombe, A Concise History of Printing, page 158
  4. colloquialTo ferment.
Cite this entry
APA

work off. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/work%20off

MLA

“work off.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/work%20off. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “work off,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/work%20off.

Source: work off on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.