on the off chance
idiom
—used to talk about something that might happen or be true but that is not likely
I called his office on the off chance that he would still be there, but he had already left.
Examples of on the off chance in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
And on the off chance there could be another special female guest at the Kelce table this year, Donna is ready for it.
—
Anna Lazarus Caplan, Peoplemag, 3 Nov. 2023
There’s also the option to add a wood or acrylic display stand on the off chance that your recipient loves their gift too much to actually play with it.
—Jessica MacDonald, Travel + Leisure, 11 Oct. 2023
And on the off chance that South Bend hosts a shootout that week, the Buckeyes must be prepared.
—Jimmy Watkins, cleveland, 2 Sep. 2023
Anna Lazarus Caplan, Peoplemag, 3 Nov. 2023
There’s also the option to add a wood or acrylic display stand on the off chance that your recipient loves their gift too much to actually play with it.
—Jessica MacDonald, Travel + Leisure, 11 Oct. 2023
And on the off chance that South Bend hosts a shootout that week, the Buckeyes must be prepared.
—Jimmy Watkins, cleveland, 2 Sep. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'on the off chance.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near on the off chance
Cite this Entry
“On the off chance.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/on%20the%20off%20chance. Accessed 3 Dec. 2023.
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