write off
B2Neutral to formal. Common in business, financial, and informal evaluative contexts.
Definition
Meaning
To officially record something (e.g., a debt, asset, vehicle) as a loss or having no value.
To dismiss or consider something as unimportant, a failure, or worthless. Also, to compose and send a letter, often a formal complaint.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
The phrasal verb spans concrete financial/accounting actions (core) to metaphorical dismissals (extended). In accounting, it implies a formal ledger entry. The dismissive sense is often judgemental.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
UK English more commonly uses 'write off' for vehicle accidents ('He wrote off his car.'). US English might use 'total(ed)' more frequently in that specific context, though 'write off' is understood. The financial and dismissive senses are equally common.
Connotations
In both, the dismissive sense can be harsh, implying finality and lack of potential.
Frequency
High frequency in both varieties, especially in business and media.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
[Subject] + write off + [Object (debt/asset)][Subject] + write off + [Object (person/idea)] + as + [complement][Subject] + write + [Object (letter)] + off + to + [recipient]Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “a write-off (n.): something deemed a total loss or failure.”
- “write off the day: to consider a day unproductive.”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
The company will write off the bad debt from its accounts receivable.
Academic
Early theorists were too quick to write off his contributions as marginal.
Everyday
After the heavy rain ruined our picnic, we decided to write off the whole afternoon.
Technical
The insurer advised the policyholder to write off the vehicle after assessing the structural damage.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The bank had to write off the unsecured loan.
- Don't write him off just because he failed the first interview.
- I need to write off to the council about the noisy neighbours.
American English
- The IRS allows you to write off certain business expenses.
- Critics wrote off the team's chances after the star player was injured.
- She wrote off a letter of complaint to the manufacturer.
adjective
British English
- He was driving a written-off car that had been repaired.
- The project was a write-off from the start.
American English
- After the flood, the building was declared a write-off.
- The merger turned out to be a complete write-off for investors.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- I can write off the cost of my new computer for work.
- The car was damaged but not written off.
- The accountant advised us to write off the old equipment.
- Many people wrote off the new singer, but her album was a hit.
- The charity writes off a significant amount in unrecoverable donations each year.
- It's premature to write off the political campaign despite the recent polls.
- The venture capitalist decided to write off the initial investment, viewing it as a sunk cost.
- Historians caution against writing off the decade as merely a period of economic stagnation.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Imagine an accountant literally WRITING the word 'OFF' in a ledger next to a failed investment, dismissing its value.
Conceptual Metaphor
VALUE IS PHYSICAL SUBSTANCE / LOSS IS ERASURE (writing it off the books). DISMISSAL IS PHYSICAL DISPOSAL (throwing it away).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Do not confuse with 'write down' (записывать). 'Write off' implies removal of value, not recording.
- The dismissive sense is closer to 'списывать со счетов' than to simple 'отклонять' (reject).
- Beware of false friend 'списать' (to copy in a test) – completely different meaning.
Common Mistakes
- Using 'write off' instead of 'write down' for noting something. (Incorrect: 'I wrote off his phone number.' Correct: 'I wrote down...')
- Omitting the particle 'off' in the dismissive sense. (Incorrect: 'They wrote the proposal.' Correct: '...wrote off...')
- Confusing the adjective 'written-off' (e.g., a written-off car) with 'written'.
Practice
Quiz
In which sentence is 'write off' used in its primary, financial sense?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
The noun form is 'write-off' (with a hyphen), e.g., 'The car was a total write-off.' or 'The tax write-off was substantial.'
Yes, in a dismissive, often negative sense: 'Don't write her off just because she's young.' It means to judge someone as incapable or unimportant.
'Write off' means to reduce the value of an asset to zero, recognising a total loss. 'Write down' means to reduce the recorded value of an asset by a certain amount, recognising a partial loss.
Yes, it is a separable phrasal verb. You can say 'write off the debt' or 'write the debt off'. When the object is a pronoun, it must go between the verb and particle: 'write it off'.