off-kilter

Meanings

1. 1adjectiveafter a verb

   Not level or straight; tilted or slightly crooked.

   Grammar: Usually follows be, hang or sit: the picture is off-kilter.

   Patterns

   • be off-kilter
   • hang off-kilter

   The shelf hung off-kilter after one bracket came loose.

   His hat sat slightly off-kilter on his head.

   The old gate leaned off-kilter against the fence.

2. 2adjectiveafter a verbfigurative

   Not working or feeling quite right; unbalanced, odd or out of sorts.

   Grammar: Also appears before a noun with a hyphen: an off-kilter sense of humor.

   Patterns

   • feel off-kilter
   • throw someone off-kilter

   The sudden schedule change left the whole team off-kilter.

   I felt off-kilter all morning after the bad news.

   The film has an off-kilter charm that is hard to describe.

Common combinations

throw someone off-kilter

The unexpected question threw her off-kilter.

feel off-kilter

After the long flight I felt off-kilter for days.

slightly off-kilter

Her smile was slightly off-kilter.

off-kilter humor

The show is known for its off-kilter humor.

knock off-kilter

The storm knocked the town's routines off-kilter.

Synonyms and how they differ

askew

Askew describes only physical crookedness, while off-kilter also covers moods and systems.

unbalanced

Unbalanced is more neutral and can describe weight or a person's mind, while off-kilter is lighter and more casual.

out of whack

Out of whack is slangier and suggests something that fails to work, rather than simply tilted.

quirky

Quirky is positive and means pleasantly odd, whereas off-kilter can feel unsettling.

Opposites

Word family

kilter noun

good working order, used mostly in off kilter and out of kilter

out of kilter phrase

a variant meaning not in proper order

Commonly confused: off-kilter or kilt?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “off-kilter”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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