Definition

Verb (transitive, intransitive): 1. To write or compose something very quickly and often without much preparation or detail: This meaning emphasizes the speed and spontaneity of the writing act. 2. To leave or depart hastily: This meaning focuses on the act of leaving a place quickly.

Usage and Examples

• Verb (writing):

  • I need to dash off a quick email before the meeting starts.
  • The journalist dashed off the article in under an hour to meet the deadline.
  • He can dash off a beautiful sketch in just a few minutes.

• Verb (leaving):

  • Sorry, I have to dash off—my train leaves in ten minutes!
  • She dashed off to answer the phone.

Advanced Usage

• The phrase often implies the result is somewhat rough or unpolished due to the speed, but it is complete and functional. For example, a "dashed-off note" is understood to be brief and informal.
• It can be used reflexively in the "leaving" sense:

Variants and Related Words

• Dash (verb): To move or run with great speed. (e.g., )
• Offhand (adjective/adverb): Done or said without preparation or thought. While related in spontaneity, "offhand" refers more to manner than to the act of rapid creation.

Synonyms

• For writing: Jot down, scribble, knock out, whip up, scratch off.
• For leaving: Rush off, hurry away, bolt, run off.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Dash away: Similar to "dash off" in the sense of leaving quickly.
  • She dashed away before I could thank her.
• Dash out: Can mean to leave quickly or, less commonly, to produce something hastily.
  • He dashed out the door.

Related Idioms

• In a dash: In a great hurry.
  • He's always in a dash in the morning.
• Make a dash for it: To run suddenly and quickly towards something.
  • When the rain started, we made a dash for the car.

Verb

1. write down hastily
   • She dashed off a letter to her lawyer
2. write quickly
   • She dashed off a note to her husband saying she would not be home for supper
   • He scratched off a thank-you note to the hostess