as in double
not being or expressing what one appears to be or express
"I'm amazed you did so well" is a bit of a backhanded compliment
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Recent Examples of backhanded
This biting insult about nails Cristal is queen of the backhanded compliment.
—
Andrea Wurzburger, PEOPLE, 22 Sep. 2025
Still, Pet Sematary is surprisingly, enjoyably watchable, which is a bit of a backhanded compliment for an adaptation of something so dark.
—James Grebey, Time, 12 Sep. 2025
But, in a way, even this backlash is a backhanded recognition of the moment; the Administration, and its supporters in the fossil-fuel industry, clearly consider this the last possible moment to stifle the sun.
—Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 9 July 2025
After his wife, Hailey Bieber, appeared looking happy, healthy, and gorgeous on the cover of the June 2025 issue of Vogue, Justin Bieber took to Instagram to congratulate the model on the achievement in a sort of a backhanded way.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 20 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for backhanded
Andrea Wurzburger, PEOPLE, 22 Sep. 2025
Still, Pet Sematary is surprisingly, enjoyably watchable, which is a bit of a backhanded compliment for an adaptation of something so dark.
—James Grebey, Time, 12 Sep. 2025
But, in a way, even this backlash is a backhanded recognition of the moment; the Administration, and its supporters in the fossil-fuel industry, clearly consider this the last possible moment to stifle the sun.
—Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 9 July 2025
After his wife, Hailey Bieber, appeared looking happy, healthy, and gorgeous on the cover of the June 2025 issue of Vogue, Justin Bieber took to Instagram to congratulate the model on the achievement in a sort of a backhanded way.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 20 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for backhanded
Recent Examples of Synonyms for backhanded
Adjective
-
Haaland scored from the spot to secure City’s first victory in front of supporters at Anfield since 2003 and their first league double over Liverpool since 1936-37.—
James Pearce,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
-
The top two seeds for the eight-team conference tournament receive double-byes into the semifinals, a significant advantage in a league that typically sends only its tournament champ to the 68-team NCAA Tournament.—
Oc Register,
Oc Register,
8 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The agency allegedly used Bank of America accounts to lure young women with fake modeling offers, while financial records suggest the bank was aware of these suspicious connections, according to plaintiff’s claims.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
13 Feb. 2026
-
Some guests got very into it—one adopted a fake British accent for the duration.—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Tatianna points to cinnamon as a conductor of heat—one commonly used in lip plumper products to achieve a sultry pout.—
Essence,
Essence,
23 Nov. 2025
-
The pop of color offers a shimmer-free (rare!) means of warming up a wedding look and works equally well at lip level.—
Calin Van Paris,
Vogue,
12 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
An about-face a few years down the line might look hypocritical in light of the new Super Bowl ad the company is releasing to highlight its announcement.—
Dominic Preston,
The Verge,
4 Feb. 2026
-
Fellow Democrats Tony Thurmond and Antonio Villaraigosa attack Swalwell and Porter as hypocritical, pointing to their own stricter stances on federal immigration enforcement.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Which is not to say that Amodei is being insincere.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Then again, Friday’s show was a reminder that much of Rascal Flatts’ output can get overly glossy and insincere, so maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing after all.—
Ross Raihala,
Twin Cities,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
As Derya and Aziz’s hypocrisies, as upper-class intellectuals, are increasingly brought to the fore, Namal and Biçer’s conversational performances grow haggard and strained.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
13 Feb. 2026
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Gregg Phillips, an associate administrator at FEMA, said at a hearing this week that its disaster relief fund has sufficient balances to continue emergency response activities during a shutdown, but would become seriously strained in the event of a catastrophic disaster.—
Mary Clare Jalonick,
Chicago Tribune,
12 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Unlike body composition metrics, BMI obscures the true extent of metabolic dysfunction and cannot distinguish between muscle and fat — or between superficial fat and the visceral fat that drives diabetes, heart disease and other chronic conditions.—
Bret Scher,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Feb. 2026
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After he was taken into custody, he was found to be bleeding from his hand and had several superficial cuts on his stomach.—
Patrick Damp,
CBS News,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
So, wins were not a meaningless line on the stat sheet in King Félix’s heyday — but the voters in this election seemed to have a different take.—
Jayson Stark,
New York Times,
10 Feb. 2026
-
But for current and past dog parents, that sentiment is far from meaningless.—
Anna Halkidis,
Parents,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Backhanded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/backhanded. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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