blow off

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blow off (third-person singular simple present blows off, present participle blowing off, simple past blew off, past participle blown off)

1. (transitive) To vent, usually, to reduce pressure in a container.

   The radioactivity was released when they blew off steam from the containment vessel.

2. (intransitive) To let steam escape through a passage provided for the purpose.

   The engine or steamer is blowing off.

   • 1961 March, ""Balmore"", “Driving and firing modern French steam locomotives”, in Trains Illustrated, page 146:

     The 1 in 200 climb to Survilliers was surmounted with easy competence, the constant speed being just short of 60 m.p.h., the water level (by design) just under half a glass and the steam pressure approximately 275 lb/sq in, or near the blowing-off point.

3. (intransitive, euphemistic, UK, Australia) Synonym of fart.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:flatulate

   Please avoid blowing off while we're in church.

   (Can we add an example for this sense?)

4. (idiomatic) To shirk or disregard (a duty or person).

   Synonym: dick around (vulgar)

   I decided to blow off the meeting and leave early.

   We've both been blowing off Peter all day: he's really boring.

5. (transitive) To forcibly disconnect something by use of a firearm or explosive device.

   Her leg was blown off by a landmine.

6. (transitive) To remove something by blowing on it.

   She blew the dust off the cookbook, revealing its full title.

   • 1944 May and June, “The Why and the Wherefore: Locomotive Soot Blowers”, in Railway Magazine, page 194:

     In order to deal with deposits of soot on boiler-tubes while running, especially if poor coal is in use, locomotives are often now provided with blowers on the firebox back-plate which can be made to discharge a jet of high pressure steam towards the firebox tubeplates; this has the effect of loosening and blowing off the soot deposits.

7. To force to leave a course.

   The storm blew the ship off course.

   • 1950 August, “The Rimutaka Incline and Deviation, New Zealand”, in Railway Magazine, page 547:

     This occurred on September 11, 1880, when a mixed train was blown off the track during a severe gale, and three passengers were killed.

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