cut off — disconnect (phone, electricity, etc.)
phrasal verbB1IELTS 5+neutralcommon
To stop a service like a phone call, electricity, or internet from working, often suddenly or by accident.
Say it like a native
Textbook Our telephone conversation was unexpectedly terminated.
Native We got cut off.
'We got cut off' is exactly what people say when a call drops; the formal version is bizarre in conversation.
Pattern: cut sb/sth off (often passive)
In use
- My phone call was cut off in the middle of our conversation.technology
- During the interview, my internet was cut off, so I had to reconnect and apologize to the interviewer.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ Sorry, my phone cut off me.
✓ Sorry, I got cut off. / We got cut off.
Use the passive 'got cut off' — you don't say 'cut off me'.
Common collocations
get/be cut off— got cut off, the call, mid-sentence, the line
Don't confuse it
Not the same as 'hang up', which means ending a call on purpose.
Related
- cut off (stop supply (water, money, etc.)) — Another meaning of 'cut off' is 'stop supply (water, money, etc.)'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.