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Offhand vs Casual - What's the difference?

offhand | casual | Related terms |

Offhand is a related term of casual.


As adjectives the difference between offhand and casual

is that offhand is without planning or thinking ahead while casual is happening by chance.

As an adverb offhand

is right away, immediately, without thinking about it.

As a noun casual is

(british|nz) a worker who is only working for a company occasionally, not as its permanent employee.

offhand

English

Alternative forms

* off-hand

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • without planning or thinking ahead
    • She gave an offhand speech.
  • careless; without sufficient thought or consideration
    • He doesn't realise how hurtful his offhand remarks can be.
  • curt, abrupt, unfriendly
    • She was quite offhand with me yesterday.

    Synonyms

    * (without planning) impromptu, extemporaneous, off-the-cuff; see also

    See also

    * off the top of one's head

    Adverb

    (en adverb)
  • right away, immediately, without thinking about it
  • * Offhand , I'd guess that that's a yellow-bellied sapsucker.
  • * 1854:' William Makepeace Thackeray, ''The Rose and the Ring'' - We will have no more of this shilly-shallying! Call the Archbishop, and let the Prince and Princess be married ' offhand !
  • in an offhand manner

    • Anagrams

    *

    casual

    English

    Alternative forms

    * casuall (obsolete)

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • Happening by chance.
  • * (Washington Irving)
    • casual breaks, in the general system
  • Coming without regularity; occasional or incidental.
  • * (Nathaniel Hawthorne)
    • a constant habit, rather than a casual gesture
  • Employed irregularly.
  • * , chapter=17
    • , title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=This time was most dreadful for Lilian. Thrown on her own resources and almost penniless, she maintained herself and paid the rent of a wretched room near the hospital by working as a charwoman, sempstress, anything. In a moment she had dropped to the level of a casual labourer.}}
  • Careless.
  • * 2007 , Nick Holland, The Girl on the Bus (page 117)
    • I removed my jacket and threw it casually over the back of the settee.
  • Happening or coming to pass without design.
  • * {{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham), title=(The China Governess)
    • , chapter=8 citation , passage=It was a casual sneer, obviously one of a long line. There was hatred behind it, but of a quiet, chronic type, nothing new or unduly virulent, and he was taken aback by the flicker of amazed incredulity that passed over the younger man's ravaged face.}}
  • Informal, relaxed.
  • Designed for informal or everyday use.

    • Derived terms

    * casually * casualization * smart casual

    Synonyms

    *(happening by chance) accidental, fortuitous, incidental, occasional *(happening or coming to pass without design) unexpected * informal

    Antonyms

    *(happening by chance) inevitable, necessary *(happening or coming to pass without design) expected, scheduled * ceremonial, formal

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (British, NZ) A worker who is only working for a company occasionally, not as its permanent employee.
  • A soldier temporarily at a place of duty, usually en route to another place of duty.
  • (UK) A member of a group of football hooligans who wear expensive designer clothing to avoid police attention; see .
  • One who receives relief for a night in a parish to which he does not belong; a vagrant.
  • A player of casual games.

    • References

    *

    Anagrams

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