in the offing

1. In the near or immediate future; soon to come. For example, Jan was delighted that exams were finished and graduation was in the offing. This expression originally meant “in the part of the ocean visible between shore and horizon”; its figurative use dates from the late 1700s. Also see in the wind.

Related Words

• forthcoming 
• immediate 
• impending 
• inevitable 
• likely 
• looming 
• possible 
• probable 
• unavoidable