off-base

[awf-beys, of-]

adjective

1. located outside the perimeters of a military base.

   off-base housing for officers.

Word History and Origins

Origin of off base¹

First recorded in 1935–40

Idioms and Phrases

Wrong, relying on a mistaken premise, as in His description of the accounting system was totally off base. This metaphoric term originated in baseball, where a runner who steps off a base can be put out. [c. 1940]

Related Words

• erroneous 
• inaccurate 
• mistaken 
• sadly mistaken www.thesaurus.com
• wrong