backhanded

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

That No 10 feels the need to criticise the Greens is a backhanded compliment that shows they matter.

From BBC • Jan. 31, 2026

Last Thanksgiving was full of backhanded compliments and pointed remarks.

From MarketWatch • Nov. 27, 2025

In a 1919 review of a pair of books by Theodore Dreiser, Virginia Woolf issued some exquisitely backhanded praise for the Indiana-born author, whose writing, she thought, stood out for its roughness and vitality.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 7, 2025

Critics liked it well enough, but often in a backhanded way, calling it a very good television movie.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 23, 2025

But since I’m moving with the pitch, I have a great jump on the ball, and on the dead run and with my glove fully extended, I snag the ball backhanded and knee high.

From "A High Five for Glenn Burke" by Phil Bildner