off-duty

[ awf-doo-tee, -dyoo-, of- ]

adjective

1. not engaged in the performance of one's usual work:

   an off-duty police officer.

2. of, relating to, or during a period when a person is not at work.

Word History and Origins

Origin of off-duty¹

First recorded in 1850–55

Idioms and Phrases

see under on duty .

Example Sentences

After a car crash in Lodi, the off-duty firefighter walked up to the other driver’s window and accused the person of not letting him pass on the freeway.

From Los Angeles Times

Members of the secretive, tattooed deputy groups have been linked to a number of controversies, including an off-duty brawl outside the Kennedy Hall event space in East L.A.

From Los Angeles Times

There had been rumours that England planned a response to the haka spread before kick-off, with off-duty England prop Joe Marler - who said on Monday that the pre-match challenge should be "binned" - on the sidelines during the teams’ warm-up.

From BBC

One officer was downgraded after making racist comments to probationary officers, another for being arrested while off-duty and the third for instructing their trainee to turn off their body camera during a call for service.

From Los Angeles Times

The 13-year veteran of the department was at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival along with other off-duty Manhattan Beach police officers when gunman Stephen Paddock opened fire from a 32nd-floor suite at Mandalay Bay, killing 58.

From Los Angeles Times