SINCE 1828

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

off-air

adjective

Definition of off-air

:occurring when a radio or television program is not being recorded

an off-air conversation

Learn More about off-air

Nglish: Translation of off-air for Spanish speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up off-air? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

WORD OF THE DAY

broadside

play

a strongly worded attack

Words at Play

10 Uncommon Words for 'Drunkard'

Tosspots, stewbums, and all the rest

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'Meat Sweats': The Cookout's Worst Nightmare

They're real, but is meat the cause?

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'Diffuse' vs. 'Defuse'

Let us defuse the situation.

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Breathing Life Into 'Inspire'

The word's origins are quite literal

Ask the Editors

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Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

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Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

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Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

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Merriam-Webster's New Words Quiz—Fall 2017 Edition!

You're going to have to memorize the dictionary again.

Take the quiz

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Challenging Vocabulary Quiz Returns!

No tricks, just difficult words.

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True or False?

Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.

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Word Winder's CrossWinder

Word Winder's CrossWinder

A game of winding words.

Play the game