let off
[verb]
Synonyms:
- fire, detonate, discharge, explode
- emit, exude, give off, leak, release
- excuse, absolve, discharge, exempt, exonerate, forgive, pardon, release, spare

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English Thesaurus: explode, go off, blow up, erupt, burst, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

let somebody/something off phrasal verb (see also let)

1. to not punish someone:
I’ll let you off this time, but don’t do it again.
let somebody/something off with
After checking our identities, the customs men let us off with a warning.
let somebody off the hook (=allow someone to escape punishment or criticism)
He’d decided to make Sandra wait before letting her off the hook.
let somebody off lightly/easily (=give someone a less serious punishment than they deserve)
I think young criminals are let off far too lightly.

2. let somebody off (something) if someone in authority lets you off something you should do, they give you permission not to do it:
You’ve worked hard all week, so I’ll let you off today.

3. let something ↔ off to make something explode:
One boy had let off a firework in class.
⇒ let/blow off steam at steam¹(4)

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

explode verb [intransitive] if a bomb explodes, it bursts suddenly and violently with a loud noise:
A bomb exploded in a crowded metro station this morning, killing five people.
go off phrasal verb if a bomb goes off, it explodes. Go off is less formal than explode and is the usual phrase to use in everyday English:
Luckily the station was empty when the bomb went off.
As many as ten bombs went off across the city, most of them car bombs.
blow up phrasal verb if a building, car, plane etc blows up, it bursts suddenly and violently into pieces, causing a lot of damage:
The plane blew up in mid-air, killing all the passengers and crew.
In early 1986, a US space shuttle blew up shortly after launch.
erupt /ɪˈrʌpt/ verb [intransitive] if a volcano erupts, it explodes and sends smoke and rock into the sky:
The volcano has erupted at least fifteen times since 1883.
burst verb [intransitive] if something that has air or liquid inside it bursts, it explodes and the air or liquid comes out:
One of the water pipes had burst.
The plane caught fire after its tyre burst on landing.
set off phrasal verb to make a bomb explode, either deliberately or accidentally. Set off is less formal than explode and is the usual phrase to use in everyday English:
The group set off a bomb outside a crowded cafe in Izmir last September.
Police say radio signals were probably used to set the bomb off.
detonate /ˈdetəneɪt/ verb [transitive] to make a bomb explode, especially by using special equipment. Detonate is a more technical word than set off:
Army experts detonated the bomb safely in a nearby field.
The 200 kg bomb was detonated by terrorists using a remote-control device.
let off phrasal verb British English to deliberately make a bomb explode:
Terrorists let off a bomb in the city centre.
The bomb was let off shortly before 3 pm.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

explode verb [transitive] to make a bomb burst suddenly and violently with a loud noise:
The terrorists planned to explode a car bomb outside the US embassy.
set off phrasal verb to make a bomb explode, either deliberately or accidentally. Set off is less formal than explode and is the usual phrase to use in everyday English:
The group set off a bomb outside a crowded cafe in Izmir last September.
Police say radio signals were probably used to set the bomb off.
detonate /ˈdetəneɪt/ verb [transitive] to make a bomb explode, especially by using special equipment. Detonate is a more technical word than set off:
Army experts detonated the bomb safely in a nearby field.
The 200 kg bomb was detonated by terrorists using a remote-control device.
let off phrasal verb British English to deliberately make a bomb explode:
Terrorists let off a bomb in the city centre.
The bomb was let off shortly before 3 pm.
blow up phrasal verb to make a building, car, plane etc explode:
He was involved in a plot to blow up a passenger jet.
He struck a match and blew the whole place up.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

let off
let (someone) off
to not punish someone.
The judge let the boys off because they hadn't ever been in trouble before.

Related vocabulary: off the hook

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

let off
1. • let (someone) off (easy)
release someone with little or no punishment
The judge let the man off easy because he seemed to be sincere in his apology for his crime.

The judge let the man off easy in spite of the strong case against him.

2. • let (someone) off
permit someone to leave a car/train/boat/plane or other transportation
The train stopped at a very small town and let the young woman off.

3. • let (something) off
discharge (a gun), explode something, release something
The children let off many firecrackers during the festival.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

let something off
• let (something) off
discharge (a gun), explode something, release something
The children let off many firecrackers during the festival.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

let off
v.
1. To discharge (a gun); explode; fire.
Willie accidentally let off his father's shotgun and made a hole in the wall.
Synonym: GO OFF, LET LOOSE².
2. To permit to go or escape; excuse from a penalty, a duty, or a promise.
Two boys were caught smoking in school but the principal let them off with a warning.
Mary's mother said that she would let Mary off from drying the supper dishes.
The factory closed for a month in the summer and let the workers off.
Compare: LET GO.
3. or informal

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲