Put off means to delay something until a later time, which may be clear but often is not.
"We put off the migration until after the holiday freeze."
"I keep putting off that difficult conversation with my manager."
Why "put off" carries a slightly different tone than "postpone" or "reschedule"
Reschedule usually means that a new time has been set; it is neutral and useful for calendar events.
"We rescheduled the meeting to Thursday at 2pm." (a new, specific time exists)
Postpone is more formal and can be used with or without a new date.
"The launch has been postponed indefinitely." (formal, no new date needed)
Put off is more conversational. It can suggest delay by choice or a wish to avoid a task. That implication is common when a person is the subject, but context still decides the meaning.
"I put off writing the performance review until the last possible day." (implies reluctance, not just scheduling)
"The team put off the decision while it gathered more evidence." (states a reason for the delay)
Do not infer a motive from the phrase alone, since a delay may come from fear, limited data, new work, or a planned pause. State the reason when it matters.
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See how Lyra Practice works →The grammar: "put off" takes a gerund, not an infinitive
When put off is followed by an action, use the -ing form rather than an infinitive with to.
Correct:
"I keep putting off responding to that email."
Incorrect:
"I keep putting off to respond to that email."
Many English verbs do take an infinitive, as in "I want to respond" and "I decided to respond." However, put off takes a noun or an -ing form, as do avoid, postpone, and consider.
Common mistakes
Mistake 1: Using the infinitive instead of the gerund.
Wrong:
"We put off to launch the feature."
Correct:
"We put off launching the feature."
Mistake 2: Using "put off" for something that was cancelled, not delayed.
Put off presents the event as delayed, not ended, but it does not prove that the event will happen. If a decision is final, say cancelled or ended so people can plan.
"The project was put off, not cancelled — we're revisiting it next quarter." (correct, if true)
Mistake 3: Overusing "put off" for yourself in a way that signals unreliability.
In a work update, repeated use of "I put this off" puts the focus on the delay. Give the reason, operational effect, and next step without blaming a person or hiding a decision behind vague words.
"I put off the report while I handled an urgent client issue." (direct and casual)
"I prioritized the client issue over the report this week. I can send the report Friday." (clear choice and next step)
Practice scenarios
Practice using put off in situations like:
- explaining, honestly, that you delayed a task you were avoiding
- telling a team that a decision or launch has been pushed to a later, unspecified date
- gently calling out a pattern of repeated delays on a project
- deciding, out loud, to stop postponing something difficult
Useful practice phrases:
- "I keep putting off..."
- "We've decided to put off [the launch/decision] until..."
- "I can't put this off any longer."
- "Let's not put off talking about this — it'll only get harder."
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