: an unaccented beat or portion of a beat in a musical measure
: different from the ordinary, usual, or expected in usually an appealing way : eccentric, unconventional
an offbeat romantic comedy
… you have to drive through a shallow stream to reach this wonderfully offbeat inn, hiding behind immaculate rows of fruit trees. But it's worth it.—
William Sertl
William SertlLuscious ice cream made fresh daily comes in such offbeat flavors as banana-walnut, chocolate-cherry, and nectarine.—Caroline Bates
Caroline Bates… our profession's deepest and darkest secret—that libraries are a ball to work in and that librarians tend to be rather offbeat and funky people.—Will Manley
Will ManleyExamples of offbeat in a Sentence
Adjective
She has an offbeat sense of humor.
He often plays offbeat characters in his films.
an offbeat approach to teaching
The performance was refreshingly offbeat.
Recent Examples on the Web
Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 6 Feb. 2026
Sportsbooks go all out for the Super Bowl, rolling out a huge slate of prop bets that range from the straightforward — passing yards, rushing totals — to the offbeat.
—Neil Greenberg, Washington Post, 4 Feb. 2026
Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 13 Feb. 2026
In the 1990s and 2000s, Sundance was an offbeat destination for Hollywood’s creative talent, rejecting the glitz of European festivals and the solemnity of awards season in favor of strong movies that garnered word-of-mouth interest.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 11 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for offbeat
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Noun
The exclusive trailer below will give you a better sense for the mix of the serious, the hilarious, and the offbeat in Two Mountains Weighing Down My Chest.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 6 Feb. 2026
Sportsbooks go all out for the Super Bowl, rolling out a huge slate of prop bets that range from the straightforward — passing yards, rushing totals — to the offbeat.
—Neil Greenberg, Washington Post, 4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
Y’all make sure to follow him at @MrChadBishop — and bookmark this page to keep tabs on his more offbeat spring training adventures, too.
—Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 13 Feb. 2026
In the 1990s and 2000s, Sundance was an offbeat destination for Hollywood’s creative talent, rejecting the glitz of European festivals and the solemnity of awards season in favor of strong movies that garnered word-of-mouth interest.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 11 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for offbeat
Cite this Entry
“Offbeat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/offbeat. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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