offer
verb (used with object)
to present for acceptance or rejection; proffer.
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)
-
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
-
a proposal of marriage
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short for offer price
-
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
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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:
Musk has considerable say over any offer SpaceX makes for Tesla, thanks to his sweeping control over the rocket company.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
Eclipse glasses - which will be handed out at events across Scotland hosted by astronomical societies or bought online - can offer protection from harmful rays of sunlight.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
Last month, shareholders approved a proposal that would allow the retailer to issue more stock related to a potential offer for eBay.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
These surviving signatures offer valuable clues about the long and complicated history shared by humans and dogs.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 10, 2026
But he just says, “I really thought Fran was gonna offer me water, too.”
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
Staff at Ealing Broadway, Ilford, Paddington, Romford and Woolwich Elizabeth Line stations will hand out "Please Offer Me A Seat", "Baby on Board" and "Babies on Board" badges to customers who need them.
From BBC ● May 11, 2026
Offer to look over and send out her résumé.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 25, 2026
Appeared in the January 30, 2026, print edition as 'Tom Homan’s Good Offer to Minneapolis'.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 29, 2026
“We amended this Offer to address Warner Bros. stated concerns regarding the Prior Proposal and the December 8 Offer,” Paramount said in a Monday Securities & Exchange Commission filing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 22, 2025
“You’re free to go to other places. Offer will last.until five. But you’ll find that I give the best price. I’m not trying to sell you short.”
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
Those offers can look tempting, especially when you’re sitting on a large sum.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
But the leadership of North Korea has yet to respond to his repeated offers.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
These can be used to produce ethane, propane and butane, and means the gas offers higher margins which is predominantly used for exports.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
For Richard Tur, the founder of NoiseOff, an organization that tracks and offers noise pollution solutions, it doesn’t seem necessary for bystanders to feel a siren “pounding through your body.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
“Hello? Do you know how many offers I’ve had since I starred in those commercials for Mr. Lemoncello?”
From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein
He said he called Leicester manager and fellow countryman Claudio Ranieri, and offered to sing in the "big fiesta".
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
Israel, Mexico, Ecuador and France also offered assistance.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
You can think of the road show as Mellencamp’s response to the success of Madonna’s recent Celebration tour, which offered a similar look back by a pop icon long averse to nostalgia.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
Dogs were shaped not only by the opportunities offered by particular environments, but also by biological threats that limited where they could successfully live.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 10, 2026
Lucy followed Maggie and offered to carry the ice chest, so Maggie didn’t have to juggle it along with her auntie’s ceramic bowl and the bags of flour.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Many are longtime supporters who signed on with the company’s initial public offering just weeks ago.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
About a week and a half into her care, she was moved out of the intensive care unit, offering a glimmer of hope.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
Those with custodial sentences would serve all of it out in their home country, or a third country offering rented prison spaces if they refuse to take them.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
South Korea's dovish President Lee Jae Myung has reversed the stance of his hawkish predecessor since taking power in June 2025, offering Pyongyang talks without preconditions.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
Nate rests his hand on my knee, the weight of it offering a comfort I didn’t know I needed.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
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.
