SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
offhand
adjective
Casual or informal in manner, sometimes to the point of seeming dismissive.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Casual or insufficiently considered
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topOffhand can mean casually delivered or dismissive; brusque is more directly abrupt or curt.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See offhand in use
An offhand remark about the project discouraged volunteers who had worked hard.
An offhand comment about the unfinished program, delivered while someone packed cables, sounded more casual than the organizers had expected.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license