off-key
Americanadjective
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deviating from the correct tone or pitch; out of tune.
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Informal. somewhat irregular, abnormal, or incongruous.
adjective
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music
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not in the correct key
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out of tune
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out of keeping; discordant
Etymology
Origin of off-key
First recorded in 1925–30
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.
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
Playing on home clay in his first tournament since a three-month doping ban, Sinner overcame an off-key start before overcoming the 11th seed 1-6 6-0 6-3.
From BBC • May 16, 2025
These songs look and feel like old-Hollywood-style musical numbers, but charm because of their imperfections; characters sing off-key, they lose their breath and their voices crack.
From Salon • Dec. 7, 2024
If their off-key, overlooked masterpiece “Mississippi Grind” is any indication, “Freaky Tales” may well be the next iteration of Boden and Fleck at their loose and lived-in best.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 17, 2024
I began to walk, humming softly, and maybe it was the rhythmic movement, or my off-key tune, but the baby seemed to relax.
From "Willodeen" by Katherine Applegate
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.
