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offhand

   Also found in: Legal, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.02 sec.
off·hand  (ôfhnd, f-)
adv.
Without preparation or forethought; extemporaneously.
adj. also off·hand·ed (-hndd)
Performed or expressed without preparation or forethought. See Synonyms at extemporaneous.

offhanded·ly adv.
offhanded·ness n.

offhand [ˌɒfˈhænd]
adj also offhanded
adv
1. without care, thought, or consideration; sometimes, brusque or ungracious an offhand manner
2. without preparation or warning; impromptu
offhandedly  adv
offhandedness  n
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Adj.1.offhand - with little or no preparation or forethought; "his ad-lib comments showed poor judgment"; "an extemporaneous piano recital"; "an extemporary lecture"; "an extempore skit"; "an impromptu speech"; "offhand excuses"; "trying to sound offhanded and reassuring"; "an off-the-cuff toast"; "a few unrehearsed comments"
unprepared - without preparation; not prepared for; "unprepared remarks"; "the shock was unprepared"; "our treaty makers approached their immensely difficult problems unprepared"- R.E.Danielson
2.offhand - casually thoughtless or inconsiderate; "an offhand manner"; "she treated most men with offhand contempt"
careless - marked by lack of attention or consideration or forethought or thoroughness; not careful; "careless about her clothes"; "forgotten by some careless person"; "a careless housekeeper"; "careless proofreading"; "it was a careless mistake"; "hurt by a careless remark"
Adv.1.offhand - without previous thought or preparation; "couldn't give the figures offhand"; "we decided offhand to go to Canada"; "she had made these remarks offhandedly"
2.offhand - in a casually inconsiderate manner; "replied offhand, his mind a million miles away"; "she threw him over offhandedly without even a Dear-John letter"

offhand
adjective
casual, informal, indifferent, careless, abrupt, cavalier, aloof, unconcerned, curt, uninterested, glib, cursory, couldn't-care-less, apathetic, perfunctory, blasé, brusque, take-it-or-leave-it (informal), nonchalant, lackadaisical, unceremonious, offhanded Consumers found the attitude of its staff offhand.
casual serious, responsible, careful, intent, thoughtful, attentive
adverb
off the cuff (informal), spontaneously, impromptu, just like that (informal), ad lib, extempore, off the top of your head (informal), without preparation, extemporaneously I couldn't tell you offhand how long he's worked here.
Translations
offhand [ɒfˈhænd]
A. ADJ
1. (= casual) he was very offhand about his achievementsno daba importancia a sus logros
"it was nothing," he said in an offhand manner-no fue nada -dijo como quitándole importancia
"it could have been worse," said Hamish, in an offhand tone-podría haber sido peor -dijo Hamish en tono despreocupado
his attitude to work/punctuality is very offhandse toma el trabajo/la puntualidad muy a la ligera
2. (= cavalier) → displicente
the next day he was very offhand with heral día siguiente estuvo muy displicente con ella
to treat sb in an offhand mannertratar a algn con displicencia
B. ADV (= without some thought) → sin pensarlo
I can't tell you offhandno te lo puedo decir así de pronto or sin pensarlo un poco or (LAm) así nomás
offhand, I'd say that there were around 40así, a ojo, diría que eran unos cuarenta
do you know offhand where the copies are kept?¿sabes por casualidad dónde se guardan las copias?
do you know her phone number offhand?¿te sabes de memoria su número de teléfono?
offhand [ˌɒfˈhænd]
adj [person] → désinvolte
adv
I can't tell you offhand → Je ne peux pas vous le dire comme ça.
offhand
adj (also off-handed: = casual) remark, mannerlässig; to be offhand with somebodysich jdm gegenüber lässig benehmen; to be offhand about somethingetw leichthin abtun
advso ohne Weiteres, aus dem Stand (inf); I couldn’t tell you offhanddas könnte ich Ihnen auf Anhieb or so ohne Weiteres nicht sagen
offhand [ˈɒfˈhænd]
1. adj (casual) → disinvolto/a; (curt) → sgarbato/a
2. adv I can't tell you offhandnon posso dirtelo su due piedi

offhand [ˈɒfˈhænd]
1. adj (casual) → disinvolto/a; (curt) → sgarbato/a
2. adv I can't tell you offhandnon posso dirtelo su due piedi


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He spoke in a very loud, offhand way, and I thought it very unlike him not to see about the shoe, as he was generally wonderfully particular about loose nails in our shoes.
The doctor was a little bearded man in white, with an offhand manner.
Natasha suddenly shrank into herself and involuntarily assumed an offhand air which alienated Princess Mary still more.
 
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