as in distant
having or showing a lack of friendliness or interest in others
she was consistently surly and offish with the would-be suitors who came calling
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Recent Examples of offish
So long as that situation continues, the 43-year-old’s allegedly arrogant and stand-offish treatment of his players will not worry the club hierarchy too much.
—
Dermot Corrigan,
New York Times,
31 Oct. 2025
They weren’t being stand-offish, not at all.
—
Baz Bamigboye,
Deadline,
5 Sep. 2025
Richard’s other big ally is undervalued and initially stand-offish plant engineer Clarence C. Baker (Dennis Haysbert), who eventually warms to Richard’s interest in his machines, and who encourages him to think big.
—
Peter Debruge,
Variety,
11 Mar. 2023
Guzmán said the stereotype that Germans are stand-offish is way off the mark.
—
Soudi Jiménezescritor,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Nov. 2022
But announcements on two continents in the last week show that showing the stand-offish situation is changing, with Royal Dutch Shell and General Motors hooking up in the US and BP buying into a BMW-Daimler charging joint venture in Europe.
—
Michael Taylor,
Forbes,
18 Oct. 2021
Off fans will also find a few cakes, including the show-offish Swedish Prinsesstårta.
—
Kate Krader,
Bloomberg.com,
13 Nov. 2020
The plaza between the two buildings makes the complex feel open and welcoming, not overbearing or stand-offish.
—
Steven Litt,
cleveland,
4 Oct. 2020
Most of the mentor-teacher characters in kung fu films are extremely stand-offish and intimidating.
—
Clark Collis,
EW.com,
1 July 2020
Dermot Corrigan,
New York Times,
31 Oct. 2025
They weren’t being stand-offish, not at all.
—
Baz Bamigboye,
Deadline,
5 Sep. 2025
Richard’s other big ally is undervalued and initially stand-offish plant engineer Clarence C. Baker (Dennis Haysbert), who eventually warms to Richard’s interest in his machines, and who encourages him to think big.
—
Peter Debruge,
Variety,
11 Mar. 2023
Guzmán said the stereotype that Germans are stand-offish is way off the mark.
—
Soudi Jiménezescritor,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Nov. 2022
But announcements on two continents in the last week show that showing the stand-offish situation is changing, with Royal Dutch Shell and General Motors hooking up in the US and BP buying into a BMW-Daimler charging joint venture in Europe.
—
Michael Taylor,
Forbes,
18 Oct. 2021
Off fans will also find a few cakes, including the show-offish Swedish Prinsesstårta.
—
Kate Krader,
Bloomberg.com,
13 Nov. 2020
The plaza between the two buildings makes the complex feel open and welcoming, not overbearing or stand-offish.
—
Steven Litt,
cleveland,
4 Oct. 2020
Most of the mentor-teacher characters in kung fu films are extremely stand-offish and intimidating.
—
Clark Collis,
EW.com,
1 July 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for offish
Adjective
-
Assemblymember Alex Bores, had 35%, followed by Schlossberg, who trailed in a distant third with less than 11%.
-
Wet paint auctions feel like a distant memory, with frivolous, speculative art buying, especially from 2020 to 2022, now being passé.
Adjective
-
They got approved for a mortgage on a £150,000 (about $198,441) two-bedroom, semi-detached house in Seaham, England.
-
Olise has purposefully cultivated a kind of detached non-persona.
Adjective
-
To prevent that, some operators maintain low oil flow rates, akin to dripping a faucet in freezing cold weather to avoid frozen pipes.
-
Aging And The Long Game Of Leadership The conversation around aging often centers on biohackers seeking to lower their biological age through cold plunges, red light therapy, and peptides.
Adjective
-
This cool, cosmopolitan hotel is within walking distance of Bend’s best restaurants, shops, and the Deschutes River, and was named one of the best in the country by Tripadvisor users in 2025.
-
The fermentation is slow and cool to protect the aromas.
Adjective
-
Combine gin, lime juice, syrup, Aperol and dry Curaçao in a shaker filled with ice.
-
Although oil companies still needed to use up a significant portion of their inventories during the supply shock, the demand destruction kept crude stockpiles from running dry.
Adjective
-
While Kafka is a bit more of a reserved personality, he’s been described as a coach who’s personable and can work with anyone.
-
Even in recordings from the ’90s, Alfa displays a reserved but expressive personality, and a talent for fusing disparate sounds fluidly together.
Adjective
-
Cats are infamous for being aloof creatures.
-
The design is still in progress, and while NJ Transit has joined Amtrak in shaping the latest proposal, the MTA remains sulkily aloof.
Adjective
-
Such movement was not mirrored on the Netherlands’ right, where the attack-minded Denzel Dumfries was playing a more withdrawn role.
-
Without daily contact with peers, some children become more withdrawn, lonely or emotionally flat.
Cite this Entry
“Offish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/offish. Accessed 27 Jun. 2026.
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