offhand
cavalierly, curtly, or brusquely: to reply offhand.
without previous thought or preparation; extempore: to decide offhand to take a trip.
informal, casual, curt, or brusque: an offhand manner.
Also offhanded. done or made offhand.
Glassmaking. working manually and without the use of molds: offhand blowing.
Origin of offhand
1Other words for offhand
Opposites for offhand
Other words from offhand
- off·hand·ed·ly, adverb
- off·hand·ed·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use offhand in a sentence
The cards were laid on the table by him, and Hop picked them up in an offhanded way.
Young Wild West at "Forbidden Pass" | An Old ScoutYes; I think I knew even in his offhanded reference to comments on those that he was using Marxian terminology.
Warren Commission (9 of 26): Hearings Vol. IX (of 15) | The President's Commission on the Assassination of President KennedyPoor little Jane adds, "These words told me offhanded and without preparation agitated my soul within me."
Ten Girls from History | Kate Dickinson SweetserBut Lou was jolly and frank and offhanded, while Ruth was painfully shy and reserved, and that was the secret of the whole matter.
Lucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories, 1896 to 1901 | Lucy Maud MontgomeryNobody hurt, you see, remarked Grizzly, in an offhanded way.
Ralph, the Train Dispatcher | Allen Chapman
British Dictionary definitions for offhand
/ (ˌɒfˈhænd) /
without care, thought, or consideration; sometimes, brusque or ungracious: an offhand manner
without preparation or warning; impromptu
Derived forms of offhand
- offhandedly, adverb
- offhandedness, noun
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
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