out of whack

See also: out-of-whack

English

Alternative forms

• out-of-whack

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Adjective

out of whack (comparative more out of whack, superlative most out of whack)

1. (colloquial, idiomatic) Wrong, broken; specifically:
   • 2024 September 11, Richard Brody, ““Winner” Takes Political Comedy Seriously”, in The New Yorker‎^[1]:

     In its hearty directness, “Winner” suggests that being mad as hell at a system that’s out of whack is as American as Hollywood itself.

   1. Not in proper balance; unbalanced.

      Our priorities have gotten out of whack.

   2. Not in proper alignment.

      The floor is so out of whack that the door hits it when opened.

   3. Not working or operating properly.

      My banged-up left knee is out of whack.

Usage notes

• The unhyphenated spelling is usually used predicatively, and the hyphenated spelling usually occurs when the phrase appears before the word it modifies.

Translations

Translations

• Spanish: a la virulé

See also

• out of true