backhanded compliment

Examples (20)

• Saying 'You're so articulate for a person your age' is a classic backhanded compliment.
• In a backhanded compliment, she said he looked very good for his age.
• I wasn't sure how to take his comment; it sounded like a backhanded compliment.
• Telling me my report was 'surprisingly well-written' felt like a backhanded compliment.
• She's a master of the backhanded compliment, making you feel both praised and insulted.
• Her comment that my dress was 'very brave' was a classic backhanded compliment.
• His remark that my report was 'surprisingly good' was a clear backhanded compliment.
• "You're not as dumb as you look" is perhaps the most famous backhanded compliment.
• He's known for giving backhanded compliments that leave people confused.
• He wasn't sure how to react to such a confusing backhanded compliment.
• Was it a backhanded compliment when she said my apartment was clean for a bachelor pad?
• I realized too late that what I said could be taken as a backhanded compliment.
• That praise about my driving being 'much better than last time' felt like a backhanded compliment.
• She is the master of the backhanded compliment, always leaving you feeling slightly insulted.
• I received a backhanded compliment from my boss, who said my work was 'decent, for a rookie'.
• Praising the project for its 'good effort' was a faint and backhanded compliment.
• Telling someone they look great for their age can often be perceived as a backhanded compliment.
• Calling his tiny apartment 'charming and quaint' was a thinly veiled backhanded compliment.
• I'd rather receive honest criticism than a passive-aggressive backhanded compliment.
• The critic's review was full of backhanded compliments, praising the film's ambition while mocking its execution.