off-speed
Americanadjective
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.
It was an off-speed pitch first derived from the forkball that hadn’t been popular since the age of the Walkman—and its reputation for shredding elbows had given it a stigma.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
With only a 90-mph fastball and a flurry of funky off-speed pitches, the 36-year-old navigated the first four innings without giving up a hit.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2025
She faced her biggest threat in the sixth with runners on the corners and two outs, but used a devastating off-speed pitch to freeze Georgia’s Lyndi Raw Davis.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 24, 2024
Once they get ahead, pitchers turn to off-speed pitches away and off the plate to get him to chase pitches.
From Seattle Times ● May 23, 2024
“Throw him the off-speed stuff! This chump couldn’t hit a changeup even if you told him it’s coming!”
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
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.
