go off — food spoils
phrasal verbB1IELTS 5+neutralcommon
To become bad or no longer safe to eat because it is old.
Say it like a native
Textbook The milk has become unfit for consumption.
Native The milk's gone off.
For food spoiling, natives say 'gone off' (BrE). 'Unfit for consumption' is label-speak. (AmE: 'gone bad'.)
Pattern: go off (no object)
In use
- The milk has gone off, so don’t drink it.daily life
- Food can go off quickly in hot weather if it’s not kept in the fridge.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ The fish is going off bad.
✓ The fish has gone off.
'Go off' already means spoil — don't add 'bad'. (AmE prefers 'go bad'.)
Common collocations
go off— the milk, the meat, leftovers, the cream
Don't confuse it
Not about noise or people leaving.
Related
- go off (alarm rings or bomb explodes) — Another meaning of 'go off' is 'alarm rings or bomb explodes'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.