on-message

American

[on-mes-ij, awn‐] / ˈɒnˈmɛs ɪdʒ, ˈɔn‐ /

adjective

focused on the central theme or official message of a political, business, or other organization.

The candidate's promises are on-message and echo the party platform. Your company’s ads should be entertaining and on-message.

on message British

adjective

(on-message when prenominal) adhering to or reflecting the official line of a political party, government, or other organization

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of on-message

First recorded in 1995–2000; on ( def. ) + message ( def. )

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.

But Elordi seemed less on-message when I asked him whether this had really happened.

From BBC

After so much exposure to the Western world, the athletes will probably undergo a gruelling “debrief” after returning home to ensure they stay on-message, said Lee, who is also the co-host of the BBC World Service’s Lazarus Heist podcast.

From BBC

And he quickly showed why when he showcased his ready-for-video, on-message approach, talking about how his poor parents moved to the U.S. and he had the ability to found billion-dollar companies.

From Seattle Times

After the event, O’Dea was likewise exhaustingly on-message taking questions from reporters.

From Slate

Kiggans, a relentlessly on-message candidate, was signaling that she cares about what voters care about.

From Washington Post

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023