Word.ws English Dictionary

one-off

one-off adjective: occurring once, independent of any pattern; one-time.

Adjective

one-off (comparative more one-off, superlative most one-off)

  1. Occurring once, independent of any pattern; one-time.
    • The government insisted that the embarrassing loss of the tax records was a one-off event.
    • Seeing Halley's Comet is a one-off, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
    Synonyms:
    unique, singular
  2. Special; remarkable; rare; unusual.
    • BMW is to create a one-off tribute to the iconic 3.0 CSL.2015 May 13, Hunter Skipworth, “BMW to create one-off tribute to 3.0 CSL”, in Evo, archived from the original on 26 Sep 2020, retrieved 14 May 2015
    • Grammy award-winning singer Celine Dion will reportedly earn $2 million for a one-off performance at the 2024 Olympics.2024 July 25, Chinomso Sunday, “Celine Dion to Earn $2 Million for Olympic Ceremony Song”, in newscentral.africa, archived from the original on 26 Jul 2024
    Synonyms:
    unique, singular

Noun

one-off (plural one-offs)

  1. (Commonwealth, idiomatic) Something that is done, created, etc. only once, and often quickly, simply, or improvisationally.
    • Near-synonym: stand-alone
    • I'll put together a quick one-off as a sample so we can taste the recipe.
    Synonyms:
    stand-alone
  2. Something unique and remarkable.
    • Near-synonym: stand-alone
    • It is a one-off; there is nothing else like it.
    Synonyms:
    stand-alone

Examples of one-off in a sentence

  • If such a casting was wanted in a hurry — a one-off job — there would be no question of molding it on a machine.1905, Foundry, volume 50, page 198:
  • Moreover, given that recent measures to cut the deficit have been more one-off than of a structural fiscal nature, meeting this debt target is likely only2006 September 1, EIU Country Analysis, Malta: Country outlook:
  • She said at the time that it was a "one-off" honour, but that has now been disproved with a repeat visit for Princess Charlotte.2015 May 6, Colin O'Carroll, “Fermanagh woman thought registering a royal baby was a one-off honour... now Princess Charlotte has come...
  • But even as he announced the military operation, he appeared to be rapidly trying to get himself back to the middle by insisting that the strike was a one-off and that he continues to seek peace.2025 June 22, Luke Broadwater, “Trump Picks a Side on Entering the War in Iran, for Now”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the...

Synonyms of one-off

All synonyms of one-off

Forms of one-off

Adjective
comparativemore one-off
superlativemost one-off
Noun
pluralone-offs

Origin of one-off

From one + off. Probably from foundry work, in which molds are expensive and generally made to be reusable. A term long used by artists who are printmakers and sculptors to indicate a unique print or casting. If using traditional edition numbering, a one-off would be a "1/1", which is said, "one of one" meaning the first print in an edition of one.

Questions about one-off

What does one-off mean?
One-off means occurring once, independent of any pattern; one-time.
How do you use one-off in a sentence?
If such a casting was wanted in a hurry — a one-off job — there would be no question of molding it on a machine.
What part of speech is one-off?
One-off can be an adjective or a noun.

Words near one-off in the dictionary

  1. one-ninth
  2. one-note
  3. one-of
  4. one-of-a-kind
  5. one-of-a-kinds
  6. one-off
  7. one-offs
  8. one-ofs
  9. one-on-one
  10. one-on-ones
  11. one-one

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: one-off (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-us-one-off.ogg, En-au-one-off.ogg.

Cite this entry: “one-off.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/one-off. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.