offense
noun/əˈfɛns/ · /ˈɔf.ɛns/
Etymology From Middle English offence, from Old French offense, from Latin offensa (“a striking against; displeasure; injury”).
› The act of offending.
1
US A crime or sin.
- The slave fully appreciates the saying, "where ignorance is bliss, 'tis folly to be wise." When old master's gestures were violent, ending with a threatening shake of the head, and a sharp snap of his middle finger and thumb, I deemed it wise to keep at a respectable distance from him; for, at such times, trifling faults stood, in his eyes, as momentous offenses; and, having both the power and the disposition, the victim had only to be near him to catch the punishment, deserved or undeserved.1855, Frederick Douglass, chapter 3, in My Bondage and My Freedom. […], New York; Auburn, N.Y.: Miller, Orton & Mulligan […], →OCLC:
- The popular late Middle Ages fictional character Robin Hood, dressed in green to symbolize the forest, dodged fines for forest offenses and stole from the rich to give to the poor. But his appeal was painfully real and embodied the struggle over wood.2006, Edwin Black, chapter 2, in Internal Combustion:
2
US An affront, injury, or insult.
- Thus I have ventur'd to give my Opinion on this Subject againſt the Authority of tvvo great men, but I hope vvithout offence to either of their Memories, for I both lov'd them living, and reverence them now they are dead.1680, John Dryden, “The Preface to Ovid’s Epistles”, in Ovid, Ovid’s Epistles, […], London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC:
3
US The state of being offended or displeased; anger; displeasure.
4
US A strategy and tactics employed when in position to score; contrasted with defense.
5
US The portion of a team dedicated to scoring when in position to do so; contrasted with defense.
- Synonyms
- offense, affront, barb, burn, dis, diss, insult, insultation, pejorative, put-down, slam, slight, slur
- Derived terms
27 terms
capital offense, criminal offense, cyberoffense, Daffy Duck offense, hanging offense, hanging offence, hurry-up offense, indictable offense, indictable offence, lesser included offense, no offense, offence to be taken into consideration, offenseful, offenseless, offensensitivity, offensible, offensive and defensive alliance, primary offense, regulatory offense, regulatory offence, shotgun offense, status offense, summary offense, summary offence, take offense, the best defense is a good offense, West Coast offense