off-the-wall

[ awf-thuh-wawl, of- ]

/ ˈɔf ðəˈwɔl, ˈɒf- /

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See synonyms for off-the-wall on Thesaurus.com

adjective Informal.

markedly unconventional; bizarre; oddball: an unpredictable, off-the-wall personality.

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Origin of off-the-wall

First recorded in 1970–75

Words nearby off-the-wall

off-the-record, off-the-shelf, off the top of one's head, off the track, off the wagon, off-the-wall, off-topic, offtrack, off-trail, off-white, Off with her head! Off with his head!

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use off-the-wall in a sentence

France 24 is providing live, round-the-clock coverage of both scenes as they progress.
LIVE Coverage of the Paris Terror Attacks||January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Sands was involved in a scandalous-for-the-time romance with the carpenter and there were rumors she was pregnant with his child.
New York’s Most Tragic Ghost Loves Minimalist Swedish Fashion|Nina Strochlic|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Although the blood-spattered offices will be off-limits, staff have vowed to continue producing the magazine.
France Mourns—and Hunts|Nico Hines, Christopher Dickey|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A Wall Street person should not be allowed to help oversee the Dodd-Frank reforms.
Antonio Weiss Is Not Part of the Problem|Steve Rattner|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Three on-the-record stories from a family: a mother and her daughters who came from Phoenix.
I Tried to Warn You About Sleazy Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in 2003|Vicky Ward|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A flash of surprise and pleasure lit the fine eyes of the haughty beauty perched up there on the palace wall.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
Kind of a reception-room in there—guess I know a reception-room from a hole in the wall.
Boys and Girls Bookshelf; a Practical Plan of Character Building, Volume I (of 17)|Various
Sleek finds it far harder work than fortune-making; but he pursues his Will-o'-the-Wisp with untiring energy.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
Distance, the uncertain light, and imagination, magnified it to a high wall; high as the wall of China.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne
He leant against the wall of his refuge, notwithstanding this boast, and licked the ice to moisten his parched lips.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne

British Dictionary definitions for off-the-wall

off-the-wall

adjective

(off the wall when postpositive) slang new or unexpected in an unconventional or eccentric wayan off-the-wall approach to humour

Word Origin for off-the-wall

C20: possibly from the use of the phrase in handball and squash to describe a shot that is unexpected

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with off-the-wall

off the wall

Eccentric, unconventional, as in That idea of opening a 100-seat theater is off the wall. This expression probably originated in baseball or some other sport in which the ball can bounce off a wall in an erratic way. [Colloquial; 1960s]

off-the-wall

Origin of off-the-wall

Words nearby off-the-wall

Words related to off-the-wall

How to use off-the-wall in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for off-the-wall

Word Origin for off-the-wall

Other Idioms and Phrases with off-the-wall