know/say sth offhand
副词用法,表示未经准备或思考,常用于口语,通常放在动词后。
I can't say offhand how many people are coming.
我一时说不上来有多少人会来。
即席的;无准备的
先理解核心含义,再看它在真实句子里的用法。
即席的;无准备的
made or said with little or no preparation or forethought
I can't say offhand how many people are coming.
我一时说不上来有多少人会来。
即兴地
Without planning or thinking ahead.
几乎没有准备或考虑
with little or no preparation or forethought
粗心的;未经充分思考或考虑的。
Careless; without sufficient thought or consideration.
随意的或不经心的
casually thoughtless or inconsiderate
I can't tell you the exact price offhand, but I can check our price list.
我一时说不出确切的价格,但我可以查一下我们的价目表。
AI contextual example
Her offhand remark about my hairstyle made me feel self-conscious.
她随口对我发型的一句评论,让我感到不自在。
AI contextual example
Quitting the job was an offhand decision that he soon regretted.
辞掉工作是他没有多加考虑就做出的决定,他很快就后悔了。
AI contextual example
offhand excuses
随口编造的借口
WordNet
副词用法,表示未经准备或思考,常用于口语,通常放在动词后。
I can't say offhand how many people are coming.
我一时说不上来有多少人会来。
形容词用法,作定语,表示“随便的、即席的”,常修饰 remark、comment、way 等名词。
He made an offhand remark about the cost.
他随口对费用说了一句。
形容词用法,作表语,表示“简慢的、不友好的”,强调对人态度冷淡。
She was rather offhand with the waiter.
她对服务员相当简慢。
Not this
He was offhand to me.
Use this
He was offhand with me.
形容词 offhand 表示“简慢、不友好”时,英语固定搭配介词 with,而不是用 to;这通常是受中文“对(某人)”的迁移影响。
Not this
He offhand answered the question.
Use this
He answered the question offhand.
副词 offhand 表示“未经准备地”时,通常放在动词后或宾语后作状语,而不像中文“随口”那样放在动词前;因此需要调整语序。
Focus on the distinctions below. Other candidates are kept compact until a reliable usage note is available.
凭记忆立即知道;一下子就想起
I don't know her phone number offhand.
我一下子想不起她的电话号码。
随口说的话;不经意的评论
His offhand comment caused a misunderstanding.
他随口说的话引起了误会。
随便的态度;简慢的样子
She answered all questions in an offhand manner.
她以随便的态度回答了所有问题。
即席回答;随口回答
He gave an offhand answer without checking the facts.
他没查证事实就随口回答。
漫不经心的语气
I was annoyed by his offhand tone.
他漫不经心的语气让我恼火。
Use offhand naturally, then get feedback on meaning, tone, grammar, and phrasing.
Revisit a common error or keep this word in your review list.
联想:'off hand' 就像话从手边脱口而出——未经思考、即席随便。注意是记忆联想,不是词源。
语域:mixed 常见场景:日常对话中的临时提问、随口的评论、形容冷淡随意的态度 该词的正式程度随用法而定:表示‘事先没准备、随口说出’时多用于日常对话;形容态度时带有随便、冷淡的负面语气。正式书面语中相对少见。
这些词都以 -hand 结尾,且 -hand 的发音都是 /hænd/。注意 offhand 的重音在第一个音节上,但最后的 /hænd/ 部分仍然相同。不要将 hand 与 handsome /ˈhænsəm/ 混淆,后者没有 /d/ 音。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.