head off at the pass

head off at the pass (third-person singular simple present heads off at the pass, present participle heading off at the pass, simple past and past participle headed off at the pass)

1. (transitive) To endeavor to catch someone or something as they pass a specific, known point, as at a pass between mountains.

   Synonym: cut off at the pass

2. (transitive) To forestall (something).

   Synonym: cut off at the pass

• “head off at the pass”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.