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Synonyms

backhanded

American  
[bak-han-did] / ˈbækˌhæn dɪd /

adjective

  1. 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.

  2. sloping in a downward direction from left to right.

    backhanded writing.

  3. oblique or ambiguous in meaning; indirect; insincere or malicious; wry.

    backhanded methods; a backhanded compliment.

  4. 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.

adverb

  1. with the hand across the body; backhand.

    He caught the ball backhanded.
backhanded British  
/ ˌbækˈhændɪd /

adjective

  1. (of a blow, shot, stroke, etc) performed with the arm moving across the body

  2. double-edged; equivocal

    a backhanded compliment

  3. (of handwriting) slanting to the left

  4. (of a rope) twisted in the opposite way to the normal right-handed direction

"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

adverb

  1. in a backhanded manner

"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

Other Word Forms

  • backhandedly adverb
  • backhandedness noun

Etymology

Origin of backhanded

First recorded in 1790–1800; back 2 + handed

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

That No 10 feels the need to criticise the Greens is a backhanded compliment that shows they matter.

From BBC • Jan. 31, 2026

Watts says you may already be attached once you notice the signs—they start a fight after a big event in the partner’s life, give backhanded compliments, monopolize the conversation—but it’s not worth sticking around.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 9, 2025

Last Thanksgiving was full of backhanded compliments and pointed remarks.

From MarketWatch • Nov. 27, 2025

In past seasons, that description might have landed as a backhanded compliment — a “nice try” in the wake of some form-breaking comedy’s ascension as a critical darling.

From Salon • Feb. 6, 2025

She wrote tracking and then using cucos right beneath it on the blackboard, and Seven wasn’t sure how to feel at the backhanded compliment.

From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.