backhanded
performed with the hand turned backward, crosswise, or in any oblique direction so that the palm of the hand faces in the direction of the body and the back of the hand faces in the direction of forward movement.
sloping in a downward direction from left to right: backhanded writing.
oblique or ambiguous in meaning; indirect; insincere or malicious; wry: backhanded methods; a backhanded compliment.
Ropemaking. noting a rope in which the yarns and the strands are laid in the same direction, the rope itself being laid in the opposite direction.
with the hand across the body; backhand: He caught the ball backhanded.
Origin of backhanded
1Other words from backhanded
- back·hand·ed·ly, adverb
- back·hand·ed·ness, noun
Words Nearby backhanded
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use backhanded in a sentence
Though I’m sure Michaels intended for this comment to be wholly complimentary of Zayak and her ability, describing Zayak’s body as a “fireplug” and talking about her lack of line gives the compliment a backhanded feel.
The Quad Jump Revolution Has Transformed Women’s Figure Skating. How Far Will It Go? | Dvora Meyers | February 3, 2022 | FiveThirtyEightThat said, there are two plausible reasons why justices like Kavanaugh and Barrett might prefer a more backhanded approach.
How the Supreme Court could overrule Roe v. Wade without overruling Roe v. Wade | Ian Millhiser | November 29, 2021 | VoxThat said, there may be one important difference between a decision explicitly overruling Roe and a decision that does so in a more backhanded way.
How the Supreme Court could overrule Roe v. Wade without overruling Roe v. Wade | Ian Millhiser | November 29, 2021 | VoxCompleting the motion, Howe pulled the puck back to his own left and backhanded it hard into the open side of the net.
Shawn sat up to say something, and he hauled off and backhanded her across the face.
The Strange and Mysterious Death of Mrs. Jerry Lee Lewis | Richard Ben Cramer | January 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
I realized that the very narrowness of my complaints was backhanded evidence of the enormous amount that the film gets right.
In his heyday, Richards had an eerily clinical and meticulous approach to drug use, a backhanded compliment to be sure.
For these women, “crazy” is a backhanded compliment, a path on the road to fame.
For myself, though I received only a backhanded blow on the chest, I staggered as if I had been struck with a sledgehammer.
In the Days of My Youth | Amelia Ann Blandford EdwardsKorman backhanded him across the throat without looking around, with such force that Gibson staggered back and fell.
Irresistible Weapon | Horace Brown FyfeSimms threw the brim of his soft hat up with a backhanded stroke and shook his head.
The Real Man | Francis LyndeThe writing was what is known as "backhanded," in strokes which appeared at first sight to be of a uniform lightness.
Round the Block | John Bell BoutonMikah asked, and one of the guards backhanded him to the ground.
The Ethical Engineer | Henry Maxwell Dempsey
British Dictionary definitions for backhanded
/ (ˌbækˈhændɪd) /
(of a blow, shot, stroke, etc) performed with the arm moving across the body
double-edged; equivocal: a backhanded compliment
(of handwriting) slanting to the left
(of a rope) twisted in the opposite way to the normal right-handed direction
in a backhanded manner
Derived forms of backhanded
- backhandedly, adverb
- backhandedness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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