off-the-record

[awf-thuh-rek-erd, of-]

adjective

1. not for publication; not to be quoted.

   a candidate's off-the-record remarks to reporters.

2. confidential.

   off-the-record information.

off the record

adjective

1. not intended for publication or disclosure; confidential

adverb

1. with such an intention; unofficially

Word History and Origins

Origin of off the record¹

First recorded in 1930–35

Idioms and Phrases

Unofficially, in confidence, not for publication, as in What he was about to say, he told the reporters, was strictly off the record. Probably alluding to striking evidence from a court record (because it is irrelevant or improper), this term came into wide use in the mid-1900s, especially with reference to persons who did not wish to be quoted by journalists. For antonyms, see go on record; just for the record.

Example Sentences

A chorus of off-the-record criticism, much of it strikingly personal, threatened to overwhelm the government.

From BBC

The operator of an overdose prevention hotline told Salon, off-the-record, that the bulk of their funding comes through Medicaid, “which seems like a pretty major threat.”

From Salon

The memo said that Google Chat is “off-the-record for direct and group messages” and includes “the ability to chat with external users.”

From Los Angeles Times

In June 2022, after Terry attended a private “off-the-record” meeting that included Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, senior State Department officials and several other Korea policy experts, a South Korean agent in a car registered to the South Korean Embassy picked her up and photographed her handwritten notes, according to the indictment.

From Los Angeles Times

Vance, whose never-Trumpism wasn’t whispered in private or dished to reporters off-the-record, but published in first-person essays in the Atlantic.

From Slate

Related Words

• confidentially www.thesaurus.com
• privately www.thesaurus.com