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off cuff
| Main Entry: |
off the cuff
|
| Part of Speech: | adjective, adverb |
| Definition: | without preparation |
| Synonyms: | ad-lib, by ear, extemporaneously, impromptu, improv, improvised, makeshift, off the hip, off the top of one's head, offhand, spur of the moment, unrehearsed |
| Main Entry: | confidentially |
| Part of Speech: | adverb |
| Definition: | in secret |
| Synonyms: | behind closed doors, between ourselves, between us, between you and me, covertly, don't breathe a word, hushedly, in confidence, in on the ground floor, off the cuff, off the record, personally, privately, sub rosa |
| Antonyms: | commonly, familiarly, openly, publicly |
| Main Entry: | impromptu |
| Part of Speech: | adjective, adverb |
| Definition: | unrehearsed, improvised |
| Synonyms: | ad-lib, dashed off, extemporaneous, extempore, extemporized, fake, faked, improv, improviso, off the cuff, offhand, played by ear, shot from the hip, spontaneous, spur-of-the-moment, thrown off, tossed off, unpremeditated, unprepared, unscripted, unstudied, vamped, whipped up, winged* |
| Notes: | extemporaneous means 'prepared in advance and carried out with few or no notes' while impromptu means 'totally unprepared, performed on the spur of the moment' - but this distinction has been all but lost impromptu conveys unrehearsed remarks or performance with an element of surprise, while extempore only suggests that this is done without notes or props |
| Antonyms: | deliberate, designed, planned, premeditated, rehearsed |
* = informal/non-formal usage
Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition
Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.
Cite This Source
Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition
Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2013 Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
