offended

American

[uh-fen-did] / əˈfɛn dɪd /

adjective

feeling or expressing hurt, indignation, or irritation because of a perceived wrong or insult.

The man replied in an offended voice, "My niece would never do anything like that!"
being the recipient or victim of criminal or morally repugnant behavior.

After the referral agent and the offender speak, the offended individual is invited to speak about how the assault affected them.
(of a sense, taste, etc.) affected disagreeably.

With the bright neon blue and red, the dress looked like clown garb, so my offended aesthetic sense told me to take it off.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of offend.

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of offended

offend ( def. ) + -ed ²

Explanation

Someone who's offended is annoyed, hurt, or disgusted. If one presidential candidate comments snidely on the hairstyle of another, the offended candidate may retaliate. If your feelings are hurt by your brother's comment that he "could take or leave" the chocolate chip cookies you baked for him, you're offended. And your grandmother's offended expression may be the result of the dreadful movie you're watching. Offended comes from the verb offend, specifically its secondary meaning "to wound the feelings." The Latin root is offendere, "to hit, stumble, provoke, or displease."

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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:

offended

"Time does not mean anything when you are about to have water lapping at your door," Peter Dutton quipped, before being told a microphone was still on, in remarks that offended Pacific island leaders.

From Barron's ● Nov. 14, 2026

Now, that joke did actually offend plenty of people, while Obama’s joke offended zero people.

From Slate ● Oct. 31, 2026

McAfee, apparently already reeling from a column in the Athletic that opined that “College GameDay” has become overwhelmed by McAfee’s “frat-rock prankster” personality, appeared deeply offended.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026

He was almost offended that his boss sent him in the first place, as if there could possibly be a notable player in his area that he didn’t know about.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026