offend

[ uh-fend ]

/ əˈfɛnd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR offend ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to irritate, annoy, or anger; cause resentful displeasure in: Even the hint of prejudice offends me.

to affect (the sense, taste, etc.) disagreeably.

to violate or transgress (a criminal, religious, or moral law).

to hurt or cause pain to.

(in Biblical use) to cause to fall into sinful ways.

verb (used without object)

to cause resentful displeasure; irritate, annoy, or anger: a remark so thoughtless it can only offend.

to err in conduct; commit a sin, crime, or fault.

Nearby words

offboard, offcast, offcut, offenbach, offence, offend, offender, offending, offense, offenseless, offensive

Origin of offend

1275–1325; Middle English offenden < Middle French offendre < Latin offendere to strike against, displease, equivalent to of- of- + -fendere to strike

SYNONYMS FOR offend

1 provoke, chafe, nettle, affront, insult.

7 transgress.

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ANTONYMS FOR offend

1 please.

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Related forms

of·fend·a·ble, adjectiveof·fend·ed·ly, adverbof·fend·ed·ness, nounof·fend·er, noun

half-of·fend·ed, adjectivenon·of·fend·er, nouno·ver·of·fend, verb (used with object)pre·of·fend, verb (used with object)re·of·fend, verbun·of·fend·a·ble, adjectiveun·of·fend·ed, adjectiveun·of·fend·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for offend

And could the word "Russkiy," or 'Russian', offend ethnically non-Russian citizens around the country?
Rebranding The Land of Mongol Warriors & Ivan The Terrible|Anna Nemtsova|December 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Worried this might turn people off from his performance, Khan said he didn't intend to offend anyone.
Defying Stereotypes, Young Muslim Writers Find Community Onstage|Julianne Chiaet|October 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But Alex Rubin cannot afford to offend any of the media willing to cover safely dead dissidents.
From Moscow to Queens, Down Sergei Dovlatov Way|Daniel Genis|September 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“This show is not an exercise to offend people,” McGruder countered.
‘Black Jesus’ Resurrected: Racial Stereotypes or Subversive Comedy?|Rawiya Kameir|August 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST

That awkward moment when you wonder not just “Who did I just offend?”
The Case Against Cards Against Humanity: Is Max Temkin a Horrible Person? (Does It Matter?)|Arthur Chu|July 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The effect is singular, and, at the first moment, seems to offend.
The Argosy|Various
Let us make both of them smile, if we can, and endeavour to offend neither.
The Attache|Thomas Chandler Haliburton
Do not press me on that point, if you please, I might astonish and offend you.
The Memories of Fifty Years|William H. Sparks
That sentence need not offend an admirer of Walt Whitman, for he "accepts both theism and the doctrine of the future life."
The Greatest English Classic|Cleland Boyd McAfee
That might be safer—but also it would mar the climacteric effect and so offend his sense of artistic fitness.
Destiny|Charles Neville Buck

British Dictionary definitions for offend

offend

/ (əˈfɛnd) /

verb

to hurt the feelings, sense of dignity, etc, of (a person)

(tr) to be disagreeable to; disgustthe smell offended him

(intr except in archaic uses) to break (a law or laws in general)

Derived Forms

offender, nounoffending, adjective

Word Origin for offend

C14: via Old French offendre to strike against, from Latin offendere, from ob- against + fendere to strike

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

offend

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

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Nearby words

Origin of offend

SYNONYMS FOR offend

ANTONYMS FOR offend

Related forms

Examples from the Web for offend

British Dictionary definitions for offend

offend

verb

Derived Forms

Word Origin for offend