1 B1 idiomatic informal
To eat or drink all of something, especially quickly.
"The kids polished off the entire birthday cake before the adults even sat down."
“
He polished off a plate of spaghetti in about four minutes.
separable
polish off
B1 informal separable transitive
To finish something completely, often quickly and with ease.
In plain English
To eat all of something or finish a job quickly until nothing is left.
What does "polish off" mean?
3 meanings, ordered from most common to least. Color-coded by CEFR level.
2 B1 idiomatic informal
To complete a task or piece of work quickly and thoroughly.
"She polished off the last three reports before leaving the office."
separable
3 B2 idiomatic informal
To defeat an opponent or rival decisively and with ease.
"The champion polished off his challenger in the third round."
separable
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To remove all tarnish ('polish') from a surface until it is clean ('off') — the idiomatic leap is that the object is fully consumed or completed.
Actually means
To eat all of something or finish a job quickly until nothing is left.
Usage tip
Very common in informal British and American English. Most often used for food (eating everything on a plate) or tasks (completing them swiftly). Can also be used informally to mean defeating an opponent easily.
Words that pair with "polish off"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
meal food leftovers task bottle opponent
How to conjugate "polish off"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
polish off
I/you/we/they
3rd person
polishes off
he/she/it
Past simple
polished off
yesterday
Past participle
polished off
have + pp
-ing form
polishing off
continuous
Hear "polish off" in the wild
Listen to native speakers using "polish off" in real YouTube videos — click a clip to watch it on Looplines.
Keep exploring
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