offended
Americanadjective
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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!"
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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.
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(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
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of offended
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."
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.
"My mother was not offended at all," daughter India wrote on Instagram.
From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026
Turkey on Tuesday expressed alarm over a weekend gig by Kanye West in Istanbul attended by nearly 120,000 fans, saying it included elements that offended its spiritual sensitivities.
From Barron's • Jun. 2, 2026
And while LIV’s roster raiding and seemingly endless budget offended the sport’s grandees, it forced the sleepy PGA Tour to lift itself off the wicker couch, re-engage with its remaining talent and upgrade its product.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
Hilton said he was also offended by the exclusion of developer Elaine Culotti, who starred in the second season of the reality show “Undercover Billionaire” and is running for governor as an independent.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 20, 2026
Christian was offended at Tycho’s high tone and the way he treated the King as an equal, and not least by this haughty phrase, which implied that Tycho might refuse a royal request.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
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.
