Buzz Off Meaning
Definition: Leave a place immediately.
This expression is usually used in the imperative, as in, “Get out of here!”
This phrase is said to someone who is bothering you, and, as a result, you want him to leave. You may have asked him kindly at first, but when he doesn’t listen, you might resort to more abrasive commands.
This phrase is very informal and a bit rude, and it is used with people who are annoying you.
It is also possible to use this phrase as a phrasal verb for when you yourself are leaving a place. If a party is boring, you might buzz off.
Origin of Buzz Off
Buzz off may have come from the idea of buzz away, meaning buzz along (or move along) in another direction, but it most likely came from the old telephoning system of using buzzers to signal a call.
Since the early 1900s, telling someone to buzz off meant for him or her to get off the telephone line. From here, it evolved to mean getting out of any place.
In the January 1920 edition of The Chickasha Daily Express we can read,
- This time he felt himself growing pettish, and remarked heatedly: “O, buzz off! Buzz off!”
In the 1922 book The Wireless Officer by Percy F. Westerman, we can read,
- Buzz off, you fellows.
Examples of Buzz Off
In the modern day, people say buzz off to someone they want to get rid of.
One might say,
Buzz off, and never come back!
-or-
Buzz off! You’re annoying me!
Rather than a command, buzz off can also be used as a phrasal verb,
He buzzed off at around 5 p.m. so that he could be home in time for dinner.
-or-
I’ll buzz off in a few minutes; I’m just here to pick up my book.
More Examples
- Unlike police officers, “you can’t say buzz off to a grand jury,” Dubois said. –Colorado Springs Gazette
- Thanks, South Carolina, for the freedom to climb on a moped and buzz off without a worry, the breeze in your hair. –The Post and Courier
Summary
If you tell someone to buzz off, you are, quite rudely, asking him or her to leave immediately. It may also mean to leave.
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