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• off-the-wall
  off-the-wall

  adjective

  markedly unconventional; bizarre; oddball.
• off the wall
  off the wall

  Eccentric, unconventional, as in That idea of opening a 100-seat theater is off the wall. This expression probably originated in baseball or some other sport in which the ball can bounce off a wall in an erratic way. [Colloquial; 1960s]

off-the-wall

American  

[awf-thuh-wawl, of-] / ˈɔf ðəˈwɔl, ˈɒf- /

adjective

Informal.

1. markedly unconventional; bizarre; oddball.

   an unpredictable, off-the-wall personality.

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off-the-wall British  

adjective

1. slang (off the wall when postpositive) new or unexpected in an unconventional or eccentric way

   an off-the-wall approach to humour

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off the wall Idioms  

1. Eccentric, unconventional, as in That idea of opening a 100-seat theater is off the wall. This expression probably originated in baseball or some other sport in which the ball can bounce off a wall in an erratic way. [Colloquial; 1960s]

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Etymology

Origin of off-the-wall

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

It’s no wonder the new season of “Jury Duty,” a comedy series that tricks an unsuspecting non-actor into believing his off-the-wall fictional circumstances are actually happening, is set at a corporate off-site.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 6, 2026

Pokopia currently has an overall rating of 88 out of 100 on review aggregator site Metacritic, making it the best-reviewed title of 2026 so far, alongside horror game Resident Evil and off-the-wall indie game Mewgenics.

From BBC • Mar. 3, 2026

“David was definitely the strangest cat I’d ever seen, and I’d been around some off-the-wall characters, even at that point in my career.”

From Salon • May 31, 2024

“They may come up with some real off-the-wall ideas, but that’s what experimentation is all about.”

From Seattle Times • Mar. 18, 2024

Sometimes they seem so off-the-wall, but they always make me think.

From "The Running Dream" by Wendelin Van Draanen