OFFENSE

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does offense mean? 

• OFFENSE (noun)
  The noun OFFENSE has 5 senses:

1. a lack of politeness; a failure to show regard for others; wounding the feelings or others

2. a feeling of anger caused by being offended

3. a transgression that constitutes a violation of what is judged to be right

4. the team that has the ball (or puck) and is trying to score

5. the action of attacking an enemy

  Familiarity information: OFFENSE used as a noun is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• OFFENSE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A lack of politeness; a failure to show regard for others; wounding the feelings or others

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

discourtesy; offence; offense; offensive activity

Hypernyms ("offense" is a kind of...):

behavior; behaviour; conduct; doings (manner of acting or controlling yourself)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "offense"):

derision; ridicule (the act of deriding or treating with contempt)

indelicacy (an impolite act or expression)

insolence (an offensive disrespectful impudent act)

affront; insult (a deliberately offensive act or something producing the effect of deliberate disrespect)

presumption (a kind of discourtesy in the form of an act of presuming)

rebuff; slight (a deliberate discourteous act (usually as an expression of anger or disapproval))

Derivation:

offend (hurt the feelings of)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A feeling of anger caused by being offended

Classified under:

Nouns denoting feelings and emotions

Synonyms:

offence; offense; umbrage

Context example:

he took offence at my question

Hypernyms ("offense" is a kind of...):

anger; choler; ire (a strong emotion; a feeling that is oriented toward some real or supposed grievance)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A transgression that constitutes a violation of what is judged to be right

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

offence; offense

Hypernyms ("offense" is a kind of...):

evildoing; transgression (the act of transgressing; the violation of a law or a duty or moral principle)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "offense"):

crime; criminal offence; criminal offense; law-breaking ((criminal law) an act punishable by law; usually considered an evil act)

Derivation:

offend (act in disregard of laws, rules, contracts, or promises)

Sense 4

Meaning:

The team that has the ball (or puck) and is trying to score

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Synonyms:

offence; offense

Hypernyms ("offense" is a kind of...):

squad; team (a cooperative unit (especially in sports))

Antonym:

defense ((sports) the team that is trying to prevent the other team from scoring)

Sense 5

Meaning:

The action of attacking an enemy

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

offence; offense; offensive

Hypernyms ("offense" is a kind of...):

military operation; operation (activity by a military or naval force (as a maneuver or campaign))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "offense"):

counteroffensive (a large scale offensive (more than a counterattack) undertaken by a defending force to seize the initiative from an attacking force)

dirty war (an offensive conducted by secret police or the military of a regime against revolutionary and terrorist insurgents and marked by the use of kidnapping and torture and murder with civilians often being the victims)

push back; rollback (the act of forcing the enemy to withdraw)

 Context examples 

Two offenses of a very different nature, and by no means of equal magnitude, you last night laid to my charge.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

No offense, young fellah.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Bingley was sure of being liked wherever he appeared, Darcy was continually giving offense.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

"No offense," said I.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

She was at least free from the offense of Mr. Darcy's further notice; though often standing within a very short distance of her, quite disengaged, he never came near enough to speak.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

I cannot forget the follies and vices of others so soon as I ought, nor their offenses against myself.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

But perhaps, added he, stopping in his walk, and turning towards her, these offenses might have been overlooked, had not your pride been hurt by my honest confession of the scruples that had long prevented my forming any serious design.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

Let me then advise you, dear sir, to console yourself as much as possible, to throw off your unworthy child from your affection for ever, and leave her to reap the fruits of her own heinous offense.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)