head off — leave for a place
phrasal verbB1IELTS 5+neutralcommon
to start going somewhere, especially to leave a place and begin a journey.
Say it like a native
Textbook I shall now depart for the station.
Native I'd better head off to the station.
'Head off' is the casual way to say you're setting out. 'Depart for' is formal.
Pattern: head off (to/for [place])
In use
- I usually head off to work around 8 a.m.daily life
- If I have an early class, I try to head off before the traffic gets bad.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ Let's head off the beach.
✓ Let's head off to the beach.
'Head off TO a place'. Without 'to' it reads as 'head off' = prevent.
Common collocations
head off + to— to work, home, to bed, early
Don't confuse it
Not the same as 'head out', which can mean just leaving without a clear destination.
Related
- head off (prevent something) — Another meaning of 'head off' is 'prevent something'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.