How to Use the Phrasal Verb ‘Brush Off’
“There are moments in life that will make you feel small. Brush it off. Your dreams are bigger than a moment.”
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The Phrasal Verb ‘Brush Off’
[brushes off; brushed off; brushed off; brushing off]
When you brush someone off, you ignore them or treat them as not important. So we can say:
“He tried to talk to her but she just brushed him off.”
“Even the manager brushed me off when I asked for help.”
We can also brush something off. For example:
“I couldn’t brush off the feeling that something was wrong.”
“She brushed off their comments with a laugh.”
Synonyms
Dismiss, disregard, ignore
Grammar Points
Brush off something → “He brushed off my suggestions.”
Brush someone off → “He brushed Maria off.“
Remember: we always separate the particle from the verb when we use object pronouns. So we can say,
“Brush it off.” (NOT.. brush off it.)
Common Collocations
Brush off is commonly used with these words: comment, suggestion, concerns, criticism, complaint, incident, symptoms, doubts, rumors.