write off
verb1
Accounting, Business, Finance To reduce the book value of (an asset) to zero.
2
Accounting, Business, Finance To record (an expenditure) as an expense.
3
Accounting, Business, Finance To remove a portion of a debt or an amount of an account owed, counting it as a loss (as a gesture of goodwill for example).
4
Accounting, Business, Finance To record a notional expense such as amortization or depreciation.
5
To treat as a write-off, a total loss, especially something damaged beyond economic repair.
- The '800' received substantial collision damage, while the High Speed Train power car was written off.2020 May 20, “Fleet News: Collision-damaged '800' at Wolverton”, in Rail, page 25:
6
Figuratively To assign a low value to (somebody or something).
- When Katya was injured, he wrote off the team's chances in the finals.
- Hey, don't write yourself off yet / It's only in your head, you feel left out2001 July 24, Jimmy Eat World, “The Middle”, in Bleed American, DreamWorks, →OCLC:
1 more example
- They have shown their staying power before and it would be daft to write them off but it must be disturbing, nonetheless, for Mourinho that his team are five points behind already and locked in a game of catch-up against the side that has just subjected them to a rare, old-fashioned beating.2015 August 16, Daniel Taylor, The Guardian:
- Derived terms
- write-off, writeoff