off-key

[ awf-kee, of- ]

/ ˈɔfˈki, ˈɒf- /

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See synonyms for off-key on Thesaurus.com

adjective

deviating from the correct tone or pitch; out of tune.

Informal. somewhat irregular, abnormal, or incongruous.

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Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of off-key

First recorded in 1925–30

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use off-key in a sentence

He says if a string in a song is a little off-key, you can pick it out and change it.
Giorgio Moroder, Dance Music Legend, on Remixing Coldplay’s ‘Midnight’ and ‘Crazy’ Lana Del Rey|Douglas Wolk|April 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The jibe is off-key too because Wilde himself was hardly immune to the sentimental and even the mawkish.
Charles Dickens' Enduring Insights on Human Loss and Suffering|David Frum|February 18, 2013|DAILY BEAST
“Bring the drugs baby, I can bring my pain,” The Weeknd sings in his beauteous, soaring voice, backed by off-key sonic beats.
Best Music Albums of 2011: The Weeknd, Drake, Britney Spears, and More|Marlow Stern|December 31, 2011|DAILY BEAST
"I would've jumped out a window if it were on a higher floor," he says of an off-key information session we sit in on.
The Great College Road Trip|Nick Summers|April 8, 2011|DAILY BEAST

By Day 40, smiles are rare, and when they occur, they seem off-key.
The Art of Silence|Casey Schwartz|May 6, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Mapihaw ku ug mutaas ang núta, I go off-key on the high notes.
A Dictionary of Cebuano Visayan|John U. Wolff
From inside came the rare sound of water splashing, mixed with a wheezing, off-key caterwauling.
Police Your Planet|Lester del Rey
Haberdasher did not fit in anywhere with Kitty's projects; it was off-key, a jarring note.
The Voice in the Fog|Harold MacGrath
It sounded off-key because it was as off-key as a ten-yard-strip of baldfaced perjury.
Highways in Hiding|George Oliver Smith
Clumsily, rustily, Ben whistled a cheerful little off-key tune to himself.
The Real Hard Sell|William W Stuart

British Dictionary definitions for off-key

off key

adjective, adverb (off-key when prenominal)

music

not in the correct key
out of tune

out of keeping; discordant

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

off-key

Origin of off-key

Words related to off-key

How to use off-key in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for off-key