off-the-wall

[ awf-thuh-wawl, of- ]
/ ˈɔf ðəˈwɔl, ˈɒf- /

adjective Informal.

markedly unconventional; bizarre; oddball: an unpredictable, off-the-wall personality.

Origin of off-the-wall

First recorded in 1970–75

Example sentences from the Web for off-the-wall

  • Zentai originated in the 1980s in Japan, land of synthetic fibers and off-the-wall trends, and has recently begun migrating west.

    Men Who Love Lycra |Will Doig |March 3, 2010 |DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for off-the-wall

off-the-wall

adjective

(off the wall when postpositive) slang new or unexpected in an unconventional or eccentric way an off-the-wall approach to humour

Word Origin for off-the-wall

C20: possibly from the use of the phrase in handball and squash to describe a shot that is unexpected