out of office vs. out of the office?

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

So, what is correct or better?

I am currently out of office.
I am currently out of the office.

Many thanks,
Torsten[YSaerTTEW443543]

TOEIC listening, talks: A film star thanks his crew for their work at award event[YSaerTTEW443543]

2

In my opinion, the “correct” answer is: I am currently out of THE office. ( = I am currently not in MY office.)

“I am currently out of office” = I used to hold (have) an appointed or elected position in government. At the present time, I do not.

For example: Although President X has been out of office for 20 years, he still wields (has) a lot of influence.

3

I agree with James. Maybe the use of “out of office” comes from “out of pocket”, a phrase which I don’t particularly care for.

4

Or maybe ‘out of office’ sounds a bit like ‘out of order’ or ‘out of breath’. By the way, Carla Jordan gives examples of ‘out of office messages’: linkedin.com/pulse/7-exampl … la-jordan/

And there lots of other examples where the phrase ‘out of office’ is used by native speakers.[YSaerTTEW443543]

TOEIC listening, talks: A company executive announces plans to save money without lay offs[YSaerTTEW443543]

5

Yes, but you will notice that “out of office” is being used as a three-word adjective to modify the noun “messages,”

I did some googling and discovered that, in fact, some people prefer to use hyphens, as in “Setting your out-of-office reply this Christmas.”