Out of Whack

Also: out of kilter

Meaning of Idiom ‘Out of Whack’

When something is out of whack it is not working properly; out of adjustment or not properly adjusted; inoperative; out of order; not in good condition. 1Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.,2Ayto, John. [http://amzn.to/2vdGvI7 Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms]. Oxford: Oxford U, 2010.,3Spears, https://amzn.to/2CEGuCz Richard A. McGraw-Hill’s Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. McGraw-Hill, 2006.,4Heacock, Paul. Cambridge Dictionary of American Idioms]. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2010.

Sentence Examples

“The books are completely out of whack. We need to get an accountant to go through everything and get this under control.”

“My back is out of whack again. I must have lifted something wrong.”

“I’m a little out of whack today. The baby was up all night with teething pain, so I’m exhausted.”

“I can never seem to keep this printer working. It’s out of whack again!”

“The climate is completely out of whack and will be for decades if we don’t do something now.”

“Sorry I missed your call. My phone is out of whack.”

“But the dog did throw up twice last night.” “Take him to the vet.” “I did. His stomach’s out of whack.” — As Good as It Gets (1997)

“Because if l don’t see you in the stands, honey…l don’t know, l get all out of whack, you know? — We Are Marshall (2006)

Origin

Out of kilter (also spelled out of kelter) dates from the 1600s but it’s origin is unknown. The variant out of whack comes from the 1800s. It is unclear why whack is used in this idiom, however. It may relate to something being hit with a blow, i.e. whacked or suffering a whack (n.). It has also been suggested that it relates to the term ‘wacky’ for crazy. 5Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.

Kilter is used more commonly in the related idiom ‘off-kilter.’