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do you use the phrase "one-off"?

GaryGary 3,982 Posts
edited May 2010 in Strut Central
A few minutes ago I was talking to the boss about a business trip I made to Orange County last year around this time and described it as being a "one-off" thing, not related to any project.Apparently Janet Napoletono used the word this morning talking about the oil spill and people in the news were talking about it, because they didn't know what it meant. My boss too, had never heard the term until this morning and was surprised to hear me use it too.He said people were saying that maybe it was a texas thing. I told him I had only lived in Texas 3 years and I don't think I picked it up there, but now that I think about it, I have no idea where I picked it up.Did I pick it up from soulstrut? Is there something record-related that people would use the word "one-off" for? Is it a common thing for people here to say?After googling it I found that people started using it in the '30s, mostly in Brittain, and it's more common there than in the US.Any thoughts?
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  • HorseleechHorseleech 3,830 Posts
    I'm from the Northeast and I've heard it used many, many times in a variety of contexts.
  • deathvalley90210deathvalley90210 398 Posts
    i'm a texas user of the phrase.
  • DB_CooperDB_Cooper Manhatin' 7,823 Posts
    I'm from the Northeast and I've heard it used many, many times in a variety of contexts.
  • ElectrodeElectrode Los Angeles 3,129 Posts
    Yeah. I normally use the adjective phrase in a movie or music related context: "Spike Lee's one-off, sci-fi comedy movie", "Claude Monet's one-off, non-impressionist painting" or "Lionel Hampton's one-off, small-label funk album" to name some potential examples. Hyphens are necessary.
  • DustedDonDustedDon 830 Posts
    boss says it constantly
  • jaysusjaysus 787 Posts
    Isn't it a dub plate?
  • covecove 1,567 Posts
    I've used it in terms of a one-time dj gig, as opposed to a regular/weekly thing
  • street_muzikstreet_muzik 3,919 Posts
    I've used it in terms of a one-time dj gig, as opposed to a regular/weekly thing
  • jleejlee 1,539 Posts
    boss says it constantly


    basically. used in business as a way to cover you ass/hide your mistake when you have a variance going the wrong direction. i am plenty familiar with it (but i did live in TX for 8 yrs too).
  • GaryGary 3,982 Posts
    I wonder if I picked it up here then. I wonder if it is a common thing to say in SoCal. It doesn't seem like it, since asking around the office most people had no idea what it meant.

    Interesting.
  • the_dLthe_dL 1,531 Posts
    its a very widely used saying where i am from (australia)
  • chrisflyerchrisflyer 275 Posts
    I'm from the Northeast and I've heard it used many, many times in a variety of contexts.
  • kitchenknightkitchenknight 4,922 Posts
    I'm in the Northeast and heard it used countless times in a meeting today.
  • Lucious_FoxLucious_Fox 2,479 Posts
    NEVER
  • djJazzOnedjJazzOne 302 Posts
    That is odd. I never thought "one-off" was a regional thing. I can't think of a better word for what it means. What would you guys use instead?

    My college roommate from Chicago had no idea what "do what?" meant. It would the devolve into a Abbott and Costello routine.
  • HorseleechHorseleech 3,830 Posts
    NEVER

    Not even just once?
  • SIRUSSIRUS 2,554 Posts
    never used it. (but i've heard it used. texas.)
  • 4YearGraduate4YearGraduate 2,945 Posts
    so is this thread a one off?

    I use it to describe my beloved collection of acetates and test pressings

    also, one time on tour we came up with the slang "zeus-one-off" after i misheard someone blabbering in the tour van at four in the morning. I still use that one, usually to describe someone who is teetering on the verge of bliss:

    "the teabagger looked like he was gonna zeus-one-off as he watched Glenn Beck break down how obama hired environmentalists to cause the oil spill"
  • KineticKinetic 3,739 Posts
    My wife makes numerous "one off" designer garments and uses this fact as a selling point.
  • deathvalley90210deathvalley90210 398 Posts
    rob walker uses it in the first sentence of his most recent post.
  • street_muzikstreet_muzik 3,919 Posts
    My wife makes numerous "one off" designer garments and uses this fact as a selling point.

    Oh yeah, I hear that a lot as well. One off samples and shit.
  • CBearCBear 902 Posts
    I've only ever heard it in context of a one-of-a-kind product. Like, "You'll never find another one of those, it was a one-off made by a company in the UK."
  • ReynaldoReynaldo 6,054 Posts
    Robert Downey Jr says it near the end of Iron Man 2. I just watched the Russian bootleg.
  • OkemOkem 4,617 Posts
    According to the internet it's a British term. It is very commonly used over here.

    It originates as a term used in manufacturing, but it's used to describe anything that is; done, occurring, or made only once.

    "I hope this trip to the hospital is a one off."

    "The time we had sex was a one off. I was lonely and very drunk. It's NEVER going to happen again!"

    "This hat is a real one off. I made it from the skins of the neighbourhood cats."


    it can also be used to describe something you feel has the attributes of being wholly original, or unique.

    "This record is a one off. Listen. NO BELLS."

    "Baby, you're a real one off, you know. They threw away the mold after they made you."
  • GaryGary 3,982 Posts


    "This record is a one off. Listen. NO BELLS."


  • highschemehighscheme 784 Posts
    i wouldn't hesitate using this term in any region to anyone

    seems strange that people don't understand it
  • FatbackFatback 6,746 Posts
    Robert Downey Jr says it near the end of Iron Man 2. I just watched the Russian bootleg.

    Shut the fuk up. Do not say anything else.
  • ReynaldoReynaldo 6,054 Posts
    Robert Downey Jr says it near the end of Iron Man 2. I just watched the Russian bootleg.

    Shut the fuk up. Do not say anything else.
    He dies at the end and his secretary's assistant is a spy.
  • GaryGary 3,982 Posts
    just when this thread was getting boring.
  • highschemehighscheme 784 Posts
    Robert Downey Jr says it near the end of Iron Man 2. I just watched the Russian bootleg.

    Shut the fuk up. Do not say anything else.
    He dies at the end and his secretary's assistant is a spy.

    you motherfucker, thanks for letting everyone know that his secretary has an assistant
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