as in off-the-record
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Recent Examples of off-the-books
Helen sends him on an off-the-books job to the London Mother House to use his mind-probing powers on Jasper (William Fichtner), a powerful vampire with a personal vendetta against the Talamasca.
—
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 25 Oct. 2025
Helen wants him for an off-the-books quest to find a possibly mythical object called the Seven Five Two, and an even more off-the-books quest to find answers about a formative childhood trauma involving the Talamasca.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 24 Oct. 2025
Scott got his first paying job at age 11, an off-the-books gig at A Bicycle Odyssey, a bike shop in Sausalito, California, frequented by the likes of Robin Williams, members of the band The Grateful Dead and Huey Lewis.
—Brenda Goodman, CNN Money, 20 Aug. 2025
In the 2021 film, Odenkirk (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul) stars as Hutch Mansell, a by-the-numbers working stiff who harbors a secret past as an off-the-books government assassin.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for off-the-books
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 25 Oct. 2025
Helen wants him for an off-the-books quest to find a possibly mythical object called the Seven Five Two, and an even more off-the-books quest to find answers about a formative childhood trauma involving the Talamasca.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 24 Oct. 2025
Scott got his first paying job at age 11, an off-the-books gig at A Bicycle Odyssey, a bike shop in Sausalito, California, frequented by the likes of Robin Williams, members of the band The Grateful Dead and Huey Lewis.
—Brenda Goodman, CNN Money, 20 Aug. 2025
In the 2021 film, Odenkirk (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul) stars as Hutch Mansell, a by-the-numbers working stiff who harbors a secret past as an off-the-books government assassin.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for off-the-books
Recent Examples of Synonyms for off-the-books
Adjective
-
The paper reported that Williamson and Wilkins never met, had one off-the-record phone call, and exchanged emails during the course of Williamson’s reporting.—
Staff Author,
PEOPLE,
24 Apr. 2026
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But through time, trust and many off-the-record conversations, those six people helped create a foundation that would eventually lead them to the CEOs.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Filling out the role of Ilya is Jay Armstrong Johnson; Jimin Moon plays Shane; Ryann Redmond plays a wine-mom narrator who lives for their clandestine love.—
Dan Stahl,
New Yorker,
1 May 2026
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For those escaping to Philadelphia from regions nearer to Pennsylvania, clandestine travel by small boat or by road was more likely than stowing away on a steamship.—
Jeremy Mennis,
The Conversation,
1 May 2026
Adjective
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Rubio, who is also Trump’s national security adviser, was one of three U.S. officials to participate in a closed-door meeting with the Russian delegation on Friday in Alaska.—
Alexis Simendinger,
The Hill,
20 Aug. 2025
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The revelation was made by House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-KY) after Barr testified in a closed-door interview during the House Oversight Committee’s investigation of the federal government’s handling of Epstein’s case.—
Washington Examiner Staff,
The Washington Examiner,
19 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
The upside of the bar's surreptitious locale is sometimes not having to share it with a soul; the downside is the potential lack of a pool partner, so bring your own.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
30 Apr. 2026
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Over the following 12 days, investigators determined that Lulinski had used his cell phone on multiple occasions to take inappropriate and surreptitious photos or videos of minors during normal school activities.—
CBS Atlanta Digital Team,
CBS News,
16 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Duties include developing operation plans and going undercover.—
Angela Rodriguez
May 3,
Sacbee.com,
3 May 2026
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The measure has some exceptions, such as undercover operations, SCUBA teams, bomb squads, and SWAT teams, but broadly bans masks.—
Christopher Keating,
Hartford Courant,
1 May 2026
Adjective
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The indictment alleges that after the NIH terminated a bat coronavirus grant to EcoHealth Alliance, Morens and co-conspirators pledged to help restore the grant and used back-channel communications to influence NIH funding decisions while deliberately avoiding transparency requirements.—
Business Columnist,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Apr. 2026
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At the center of the potential outreach is Vice President JD Vance, who is being considered for a return trip to Islamabad, where back-channel negotiations have quietly taken place.—
Sara Cook,
CBS News,
17 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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First Israeli deployment in an Arab state The covert Israeli deployment of the country’s vaunted Iron Dome missile defense system in the UAE underscored the nations’ deepening ties, an Israeli source familiar with the matter told CNN last week, confirming a report by Axios.—
Tal Shalev,
CNN Money,
1 May 2026
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Paglen traces magickal attempts to mold reality back to midcentury covert operations such as the CIA’s infamous MKUltra program—the one exploring mind control through electroshock therapy, hypnosis, and LSD.—
Louis Bury,
ARTnews.com,
1 May 2026
Adjective
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Other businesses also opted to restrict open carry on their private property.—
Angie DiMichele,
Sun Sentinel,
7 May 2026
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The clip, shared on X, appears to show Zahra Billoo, executive director of the California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations CAIR-CA, discussing how supporters should approach expressing controversial sentiments in public versus private settings.—
Stepheny Price,
FOXNews.com,
7 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Off-the-books.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/off-the-books. Accessed 9 May. 2026.
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