backhanded
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The most backhanded of backhanded compliments is paid to reporter Seymour Hersh during the documentary “Cover-Up,” and by the unlikeliest of sources.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 24, 2025
Last Thanksgiving was full of backhanded compliments and pointed remarks.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 27, 2025
They may also chip away at your mood slowly, through backhanded compliments or pressuring you to be upbeat, where they don't allow you to express how you are really feeling.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2025
The high-stakes romantic comedy “Oh, Hi!” is a backhanded compliment to lotharios like Rudolph Valentino, James Bond and “The Wolf of Wall Street’s” Jordan Belfort.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2025
This outwardly aloof but blatantly defensive tone seemed to acknowledge, in its backhanded way, that his critics had struck a nerve.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
