off-duty
[awf-doo-tee, -dyoo-, of-]
- not engaged in the performance of one's usual work: an off-duty police officer.
- of, relating to, or during a period when a person is not at work.
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Origin of off-duty
First recorded in 1850–55
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for off-duty
Contemporary Examples
The NOPD fired Knight in 1973 for stealing lumber from a construction site as an off-duty cop.
They selected an “easy mark” who turned out to be an off-duty NYC Housing Authority cop named James Carragher.
Three off-duty cops working as security guards apprehended Saylor and proceeded to restrain him in an ultimately fatal fashion.
Worse Than Eric Garner: Cops Who Got Away With Killing Autistic Men and Little GirlsEmily Shire
December 4, 2014
When Singh got back on board, he saw the off-duty army officers and realized that posing as one of them might help save him.
As 30-Year Anniversary of Mass Killings in India Arrives, Sikhs Find Safety in USASimran Jeet Singh
October 31, 2014
But what happens to those hormones when soldiers are off-duty?
Historical Examples
On off-duty days Pierre is my gardener at eleven sous an hour.
A Village of VagabondsF. Berkeley Smith
In his spells of off-duty Branscombe was a regular book-worm.
The Thick of the Fray at ZeebruggePercy F. Westerman
Twelve hours a day, from seven to seven, with the off-duty intermission, Sidney labored at tasks which revolted her soul.
KMary Roberts Rinehart
She took her anxieties out walking several times on her off-duty, but nothing seemed to come of it.
Love StoriesMary Roberts Rinehart
As the off-duty man stumbled out of the wheelhouse, the skipper also turned to leave.
Commander Lawless V.C.Rolf Bennett
Word Origin and History for off-duty
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper