cast something off—
1. (of clothing ) remove; take off:
- As the sun grew warmer, he cast off his heavy winter clothes.
2. get rid of smth. unwanted; become free from smth.:
- He was pleased to cast off such an unwelcome responsibility.
3. (of snakes) get rid of a skin:
- Snakes cast off their old skin once a year.
4. release a boat from its moorings by untying a rope:
- Don’t cast off the boat till everyone is on board.
throw something off—
1. = cast something off 1:
- It’s good to throw off heavy clothes now that summer is here.
2. = cast something off 2:
- It’s very difficult to throw off old habits of thoughts.
3. (of heat, smell, etc.) give out; emit:
- When this material burns it throws off a nasty smell and a lot of smoke.
4. write or compose smth. quickly and easily:
- It shouldn’t take me more than an afternoon to throw this article off.
5. (also: throw something away) say smth. casually or carelessly:
- Be careful what remarks you throw off in front of her, she’s very sensitive.
6. cause mistakes in smth.:
- Any small interruption is likely to throw off my calculation.