backhanded compliment
backhanded compliment noun: an insult disguised as a compliment; a compliment which can be interpreted as an insult.
Noun
backhanded compliment (plural backhanded compliments)
- An insult disguised as a compliment; a compliment which can be interpreted as an insult.
- "[…] regardless of what he may say to you, he respects your great learning, and, therefore, has immense confidence in your judgment. The poor dear cannot differentiate between erudition and wisdom." Mr. Philander, with a mildly puzzled expression on his face, turned to pursue Professor Porter, and...1914, Edgar Rice Burroughs, chapter 17, in Tarzan of the Apes
- Perhaps, finally, the Netherlands will shed itself of the backhanded compliment of being the best team never to win a world championship.1998 June 29, Jere Longman, “World Cup '98: Dutch Fans Are Orange (Hair, Dresses, Clogs and Faces) With Envy”, in New York Times, retrieved 07 Oct 2013
backhanded compliment meaning in Urdu and Thai
backhanded compliment in Urdu
- a backhanded compliment
- ذکر خیر zikr-i xair
backhanded compliment in Thai
- insult disguised as a compliment
- หลอกด่า
Synonyms of backhanded compliment
Forms of backhanded compliment
| plural | backhanded compliments |
|---|---|
| alternative form | back-handed compliment |
Origin of backhanded compliment
Compound of backhanded + compliment. Similar figurative uses of backhanded are attested from at least the early 19th century.
Questions about backhanded compliment
- What does backhanded compliment mean?
- Backhanded compliment means an insult disguised as a compliment; a compliment which can be interpreted as an insult.
- What is backhanded compliment in Urdu?
- Backhanded compliment in Urdu is ذکر خیر (zikr-i xair). See Backhanded compliment meaning in Urdu.
- What part of speech is backhanded compliment?
- Backhanded compliment is a noun.
- What is the plural of backhanded compliment?
- The plural of backhanded compliment is backhanded compliments.
Words near backhanded compliment in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: backhanded compliment (page history and authors); ذکر خیر (Urdu) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-backhanded compliment.ogg.
Cite this entry: “backhanded compliment.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/backhanded_compliment. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.