off-the-wall

adjective

ˈȯf-ṯẖə-ˈwȯl How to pronounce off-the-wall (audio)
Definition of off-the-wallnext
as in bizarre
different from the ordinary in a way that causes curiosity or suspicion she does have some off-the-wall suggestions about home decorating

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of off-the-wall Leach’s off-the-wall news conferences or postgame interviews, covering everything from Halloween candy to wedding planning, will live forever on YouTube. — Ralph D. Russo, New York Times, 2 June 2026 Follow Joe for ongoing features about ecotourism as well as off-the-wall travel destinations around the globe. — Joe Sills, Forbes.com, 4 May 2026 What’s your favorite off-the-wall rendition of a birthday anthem? — O. Rose Broderick, STAT, 24 Apr. 2026 This was not a year for major turmoil in March or crazy off-the-wall selections by the committee. — Tim Cowlishaw, Dallas Morning News, 15 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for off-the-wall
Recent Examples of Synonyms for off-the-wall
  1. bizarre
  2. funny
  3. strange
  4. weird
  5. odd
  6. peculiar
  7. curious
  8. erratic
Adjective
  • The appeal of Bleak House, for instance, is bound up in its bad actors and bizarre names, less so the action.
    — Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 30 Oct. 2026
  • The Seaside Police Department received the tip about Bumper’s bizarre breakfast invoice in August.
    — Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of bizarre
Adjective
  • Martin McDonagh’s latest comic provocation takes place on Easter Island and in 1970s Chile, where a ferociously funny John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell aim to upend the rule of law.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Sian is so funny and fun, and so is Mark, and so is Dylan [O’Brien].
    — Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of funny
Adjective
  • Talk about strange beginnings at Friday’s City Section Division I football playoff opener between Sun Valley Poly and host Marshall.
    — Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 7 Nov. 2026
  • And having one of those is as strange and terrifying as anything else in the universe.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of strange
Adjective
  • This is a deeply weird album, somehow both bombastic and elusive.
    — Hannah Jocelyn, Pitchfork, 5 Nov. 2026
  • Texas’ backhanded bid to cheat by squishing Democratic-leaning voters into weird districts?
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of weird
Adjective
  • He was considered odd, super-smart with a photographic memory, and yet different.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 6 Nov. 2026
  • For Karis, an officer for four years, one odd item that topped the list was a microwave oven with a raw turkey or chicken.
    — Meena Thiruvengadam, Travel + Leisure, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of odd
Adjective
  • Mayfield emerged with a quarterback stat line that would have looked peculiar even in football’s leather-helmet era.
    — Francesca Ebel, Washington Post, 2 Nov. 2026
  • The prosecution, a rare Department of Justice criminal case against a former employee, revisits a tangled and peculiar saga that roiled the final weeks of the 2020 race.
    — Eric Tucker, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of peculiar
Adjective
  • The protagonist, Michael, whose Chinese identity has been eroded by successive generations, is desperately curious about Kun’s dad.
    — Marta Balaga, Variety, 5 Nov. 2026
  • But woodpeckers don’t live in Hawaii, where biologists are investigating a curious bird that takes up a similar ecological niche—with its own unique twist.
    — Margherita Bassi, Popular Science, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of curious
Adjective
  • Untangling the mystery Betelgeuse has long been known as a variable star, and recent breakthroughs are helping astronomers untangle its erratic behavior.
    — Joe Rao, Space.com, 3 Nov. 2026
  • The Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office says the closure was due to an erratic driver, and the interstate was closed at mile marker 243, east of the Veterans Memorial Tunnel by Idaho Springs.
    — Christa Swanson, CBS News, 31 Oct. 2026
Definition of erratic

Browse Nearby Words

off-the-shelf
off-the-wall
of late
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Off-the-wall.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/off-the-wall. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026.

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