1
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Phrase(s): tee off
1. Lit. to start the first hole in a game of golf. • It’s time to tee off. Let’s get on the course. • What time do we tee off ? 2. Fig. to begin [doing anything]; to be the first one to start something. • The master of ceremonies teed off with a few jokes and then introduced the first act. • Everyone is seated and ready to begin. Why don’t you tee off ?, Phrase(s): tee someone off
Sl. to make someone angry. (See also teed off.) • That really teed me off! • Well, you sure managed to tee off everybody!
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs
2
general::
1. Start or begin, as in We teed off the fundraising drive with a banquet. This usage is a metaphor taken from golf, where tee off means "start play by driving a golf ball from the tee." [Second half of 1900s] 2. Make angry or irritated, as in That rude comment teed him off, or I was teed off because it rained all weekend. [Slang; mid-1900s] Also see TICK OFF.
American Heritage Idioms