off-key
adjective
deviating from the correct tone or pitch; out of tune.
off-key
American
[awf-kee, of-]
/ ˈɔfˈki, ˈɒf- /
adjective
-
deviating from the correct tone or pitch; out of tune.
-
Informal. somewhat irregular, abnormal, or incongruous.
off key
British
adjective
-
music
-
not in the correct key
-
out of tune
-
-
out of keeping; discordant
Etymology
Origin of off-key
First recorded in 1925–30
Explanation
Something that's off-key is out of tune or unmusical. If your jazz band is off-key from the first note of their first song, it'll make the audience cringe. You might not care if your friends are off-key when they sing "Happy Birthday" and present you with a chocolate cake, but you may want to get your money back if you buy expensive tickets to hear an orchestra play off-key renditions of Bach and Beethoven. This musical meaning inspired the figurative off-key, meaning "not fitting" or "clashing": "The mayor's big-city values are off-key in our little village."
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.
See Examples For:
On the love song “Easy,” she sounds creaky and weathered, flittering off-key.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
He and his comrades were often forced to sing Soviet songs and were punished if they didn't sing "loud enough or sang off-key".
From Barron's ● May 8, 2026
After Hegseth gave us his version of news headlines, he performed a brief off-key song and dance before skating out of the room having accomplished little and settling nothing.
From Salon ● Mar. 14, 2026
That moment when Jake sings an off-key version of “...Baby One More Time” is “burned into my frontal cortex,” he says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 20, 2024
Normally her singing, off-key and enthusiastic as it was, made me roll my eyes.
From "Shelter (Book One): A Mickey Bolitar Novel" by Harlan Coben
Meta also uses various signals to determine whether the person supervising a teen account—and thereby able to turn off key restrictions, such as the time limits—is actually the teen’s parent.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
In addition, the CEO cut off key finance officials from banking authorisation, granting power of attorney to individuals with no financial experience.
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2025
In the US, business groups said the raid was likely to hit local business activity as well, as it scares off key parts of the workforce.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2025
NFL Week 16 picks: Broncos-Chargers matchup Thursday kicks off key divisional rivalries that could determine playoff opponents ... and who might miss out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 19, 2024
“Oh boy, I’m happy; yes, sir, I’m happy,” he sang, off key.
From "The Martian Chronicles" by Ray Bradbury
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.
