off-the-rack

[awf-thuh-rak, of-]

adjective

1. (of clothing) not made to specific or individual requirements; ready-made.

   off-the-rack men's suits.

2. Slang.,  off-the-wall.

Word History and Origins

Origin of off-the-rack¹

First recorded in 1965–70

Idioms and Phrases

Ready-made, as in She has all her clothes made; she never buys a dress off the rack. The rack here is a frame from which clothes are hung. [Mid-1900s] A British synonym is off the peg, similarly alluding to a knob from which clothes are hung and dating from the late 1800s. Also see off the shelf.

Example Sentences

It’s the shift from battleships to PT boats, from handmade suits to off-the-rack ones.

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Perversely enough, these shows also take viewers into other worlds — those of middling wealth and off-the-rack glamour that seem just out of reach.

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But there are times when off-the-rack arrangements just won’t cut it.

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It prevents you from doing anything too foolish, while still freeing you of the compromise of the off-the-rack suit.

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Through her work at RefineLA, Luo said she aims to help her peers find outlets for their self-expression through secondhand fashion — especially because thrifted pieces sometimes have an individuality that off-the-rack clothes lack.

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