offshoot

[awf-shoot, of-]

noun

1. a branch or lateral shoot from a main stem, as of a plant.

2. anything conceived of as springing or proceeding from a main stock.

   an offshoot of a discussion.

3. a branch, descendant, or scion of a specific population or family.

offshoot

/ ˈɒfˌʃuːt /

noun

1. a shoot or branch growing from the main stem of a plant

2. something that develops or derives from a principal source or origin

Word History and Origins

Origin of offshoot¹

First recorded in 1665–75; off + shoot ¹

Example Sentences

They’ve journeyed from Spain to find Esteban’s missing teenage sister who ran off to join an offshoot of this traveling festival months ago.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Target, an offshoot of department-store chain Dayton Hudson, had opened its first store in Minnesota eight years earlier.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

This one towers above the rest, its main trunk nearly two metres wide, flanked by a dozen offshoots as large as regular olive trees.

Read more on Barron's

In 2021, the company launched PragerU Kids, an offshoot targeting school-age children and educators with lesson plans, worksheets and other learning materials tied to its videos.

Read more on Salon

In 2010, he quit Congress and helped launch an offshoot of the Heritage Foundation think tank called Heritage Action for America, which was tasked with strong-arming congressional Republicans to act more conservatively.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• outgrowth 
• spin-off