: not reported or recorded
off-the-books transactions
off-the-books covert operations
off the books adverb

Examples of off-the-books in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Her husband is still awaiting his work authorization and meanwhile looks for off-the-books jobs every morning with other day laborers. Antonio Olivo, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024 Weisselberg went to jail last year after pleading guilty to evading taxes on $1.7 million in off-the-books compensation from the Trump Organization, including a luxury apartment and a Mercedes-Benz. Compiled Bydemocrat-Gazette Stafffrom Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 5 Mar. 2024 Weisselberg went to jail last year after pleading guilty to evading taxes on $1.7 million in off-the-books compensation from the Trump Organization. Jake Offenhartz, Fortune, 4 Mar. 2024 Some have found off-the-books jobs in construction and housekeeping. Miriam Jordan, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2024 First, an off-the-books experiment Before setting up the longer process used in the study, Smythers called on an undergraduate to help do a quick experiment and test her early hypothesis about reactive oxygen species and their role in starting tun formation. Jenna Schnuer, CNN, 5 Feb. 2024 The final scene of Rocky III shows Rocky and Apollo slipping into a gym late at night to have an off-the-books third fight to determine who the heavyweight champion really is. Vulture, 4 Feb. 2024 In the age of generative AI, the theft of huge troves of medical information might be even more dangerous, as our health records wind up in data sets that enable off-the-books innovation in exploiting our ails. Steven Levy, WIRED, 12 Jan. 2024 Steve gets summoned back for an off-the-books operation following the reappearance of an old friend and freelancer named Victor Radek (Clifton Collins Jr.), who’s supposed to be dead, but has instead been murdering journalists and framing the agency. Vulture, 12 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'off-the-books.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1975, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of off-the-books was in 1975

Dictionary Entries Near off-the-books

Cite this Entry

“Off-the-books.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/off-the-books. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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