- having a meaning that is not directly or clearly expressed, or that is not intendedOxford Collocations DictionaryBackhanded is used with these nouns:
- compliment
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Idioms
See backhanded in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionarya backhanded compliment
(North American English also left-handed compliment)
- a comment that seems to express approval but could also be understood as expressing a poor opinion of somebody/something
- In a backhanded compliment she said he looked very good for his age.
Check pronunciation:
backhanded