offer
verb (used with object)
to present for acceptance or rejection; proffer.
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Offspr.
offer
American
[aw-fer, of-er]
/ ˈɔ fər, ˈɒf ər /
verb (used with object)
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offers,
present (3rd person singular)
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offered,
past participle, past
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offering
present participle
-
to present for acceptance or rejection; proffer.
He offered me a cigarette.
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to propose or put forward for consideration.
to offer a suggestion.
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to propose or volunteer (to do something).
She offered to accompany me.
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to make a show of intention (to do something).
We did not offer to go first.
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to give, make, or promise.
She offered no response.
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to present solemnly as an act of worship or devotion, as to God, a deity or a saint; sacrifice.
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to present for sale.
He offered the painting to me at a reduced price.
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to tender or bid as a price.
to offer ten dollars for a radio.
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to attempt or threaten to do, engage in, or inflict.
to offer battle.
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to put forth; exert.
to offer resistance.
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to present to sight or notice.
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to introduce or present for exhibition or performance.
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to render (homage, thanks, etc.).
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to present or volunteer (oneself ) to someone as a spouse.
verb (used without object)
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offers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
offered,
past participle, past
-
offering
present participle
-
to present itself; occur.
Whenever an opportunity offered, he slipped off to town.
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to present something as an act of worship or devotion; sacrifice.
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to make a proposal or suggestion.
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to suggest oneself to someone for marriage; propose.
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Archaic. to make an attempt (followed byat ).
noun
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offers
plural
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an act or instance of offering.
an offer of help.
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the condition of being offered.
an offer for sale.
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something offered.
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a proposal or bid to give or pay something as the price of something else; bid.
an offer of $90,000 for the house.
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Law. a proposal that requires only acceptance in order to create a contract.
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an attempt or endeavor.
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a show of intention.
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a proposal of marriage.
offer
1
British
/ ˈɒfə /
verb
-
to present or proffer (something, someone, oneself, etc) for acceptance or rejection
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(tr) to present as part of a requirement
she offered English as a second subject
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(tr) to provide or make accessible
this stream offers the best fishing
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(intr) to present itself
if an opportunity should offer
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(tr) to show or express willingness or the intention (to do something)
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(tr) to put forward (a proposal, opinion, etc) for consideration
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(tr) to present for sale
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(tr) to propose as payment; bid or tender
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to present (a prayer, sacrifice, etc) as or during an act of worship
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(tr) to show readiness for
to offer battle
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archaic (intr) to make a proposal of marriage
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(tr; sometimes foll by up or to) engineering to bring (a mechanical piece) near to or in contact with another, and often to proceed to fit the pieces together
noun
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something, such as a proposal or bid, that is offered
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the act of offering or the condition of being offered
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contract law a proposal made by one person that will create a binding contract if accepted unconditionally by the person to whom it is made See also acceptance
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a proposal of marriage
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short for offer price
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for sale at a reduced price
Offer
2
British
/ ˈɒfə /
acronym
Synonym Usage
Offer, proffer, tender mean to present for acceptance or refusal. Offer is a common word in general use for presenting something to be accepted or rejected: to offer assistance. Proffer, with the same meaning, is now chiefly a literary word: to proffer one's services. Tender (no longer used in reference to concrete objects) is a ceremonious term for a more or less formal or conventional act: to tender one's resignation.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nonoffernoun
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offerernoun
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offerornoun
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preoffernoun
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reofferverb
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offerableadjective
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self-offeredadjective
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unofferedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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offersimple
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offerssimple
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have offeredperfect
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has offeredperfect
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am offeringprogressive
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are offeringprogressive
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is offeringprogressive
-
have been offeringperfect progressive
-
has been offeringperfect progressive
Past
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offeredsimple
-
had offeredperfect
-
was offeringprogressive
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were offeringprogressive
-
had been offeringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of offer
First recorded before 900; Middle English offren, Old English offrian “to present in worship,” from Latin offerre, equivalent to of- of- + ferre “to bring”; see bear 1
Explanation
You make an offer when you present your willingness to do something. People selling a house wait for the best offer. One person offers something, and another person accepts or rejects it. It's polite to offer guests something to drink and to offer a friend some space under your umbrella. A marriage proposal is a type of offer. A threat of violence is "an offer you can't refuse" in The Godfather. This word can mean a religious act as well, or — more grossly — the kind of offering a cat makes when it offers a dead mouse to its owner.
Vocabulary lists containing offer
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.
See Examples For:
“Notably, this email did not offer to refund the purchase price or advise buyers such as plaintiff that the product was defective and using it could result in catastrophic burn injuries.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
The bill would offer pathways to permanent status for Dreamers, those with temporary protected status, and other lawful immigrants.
From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026
Turning down that university offer was a good move.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
These so-called alternative investments, including private-equity and venture-capital funds, offer substantial profits, and in many cases deliver them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
“We don’t want to pay you off, we came to offer to pay for your son’s gravestone.”
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
Offer water: Set up a water station separate from the bar so people don't have to queue.
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
Appeared in the May 2, 2026, print edition as 'China’s ‘Teapot’ Refiners Offer Financial Lifeline to Iran'.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
Offer to look over and send out her résumé.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 25, 2026
Offer letters and emails explain what a parent needs to do next to accept or decline the place.
From BBC ● Mar. 2, 2026
The headline Manufacturing Data Helps Invigorate Wall Street could have used one, and a preposition would also have come in handy in Teacher Strikes Idle Kids and Textron Makes Offer to Screw Company Stockholders.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
Evan Wolfson founded and led the successful Freedom to Marry campaign for same-sex couples in the U.S., and he writes in Slate about how his experience offers lessons for saving American liberal democracy.
From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026
Unlike condos and co-ops, the townhouse offers “privacy, scale, and authentic architectural grace” that is rare in homes located in multiunit buildings, it continued.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
Pupils travel in from scattered villages and the area offers a relatively limited range of employers able to broaden their horizons or spark ambitions beyond the classroom.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
Meanwhile, New Mexico’s legislative “truth commission” released its first report on Zorro Ranch Wednesday, but the 119-page document offers little in the way of new revelations or recommendations.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
I stuff my feet in my Crocs and take the bag of groceries Mom offers me.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
He offered to quit, but the city wouldn’t let him.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
While it’s unclear exactly how much the estate is now worth, the New York Post reports that Cosby was offered $30 million for the spread back in 2016.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
The stable conditions of the deep ocean may therefore have offered a favorable setting for the earliest stages of animal diversification.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026
In his resignation announcement, Cordeiro offered a series of questions which Infantino will likely face at Wednesday's meeting.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
Gingersnipes offered an oblivious smile, lifting her teacup.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
The Community Cupboard in Kent has begun offering pre-loved school uniforms to local families during the school holidays.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
At least two brokerages are still sending emails and text messages, reviewed by the Journal, to prospective investors offering access to Anthropic’s stock via SPVs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
The company has begun weighing a complementary offering that could be built around advertising sales.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
After a disturbing video was livestreamed on social media involving Perez Hilton on Tuesday, the celebrity blogger’s family is offering a health update.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
The aboatia gives a few slow blinks before offering a monstrous yawn.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
