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off-the-shelf

[ awf-thuh-shelf, of- ]

adjective

  1. readily available from merchandise in stock.
  2. made according to a standardized format; not developed for specialized or individual needs; ready-made:

    off-the-shelf computer programs.



off the shelf

adverb

  1. from stock and readily available

    you can have this model off the shelf

“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


adjective

  1. of or relating to a product that is readily available

    an off-the-shelf model

  2. of or denoting a company that has been registered with the Registrar of Companies for the sole purpose of being sold
“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
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Word History and Origins

Origin of off-the-shelf1

First recorded in 1945–50
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Idioms and Phrases

Ready-made, available from merchandise or in stock, as opposed to a special order. For example, Sometimes you can get a better discount by buying an appliance off the shelf . [First half of 1900s] Also see off the rack ; on the shelf .
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Example Sentences

And the company says that most of the parts are off-the-shelf, not custom-built—which helps keep costs down.

Off-the-shelf versions like the one Kate purchased go for £295—roughly $500.

Genes are not simple off-the-shelf parts with one expression.

He looked nothing at all like the young men we see in the take-'em-off-the-shelf clothing ads.

The robots were easy enough—just off-the-shelf stuff, really—but the costumes and kinematics routines were something else.

He knew where you could get plans for the robotics, and off-the-shelf motors and sensors.

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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.

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