offensive
See also: Offensive
English
Alternative forms
- offencive (obsolete)
Etymology
From Middle French offensif, from Medieval Latin offensivus, from Latin offendere (“to offend”), past participle offensus; see offend.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /əˈfɛnsɪv/
Audio (US) (file) - (sports): (US) IPA(key): /ˈɔˌfɛnsɪv/
Adjective
offensive (comparative more offensive, superlative most offensive)
- Causing offense; arousing a visceral reaction of disgust, anger, hatred, or indignation.
- 2016 September 12, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, “Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: Political Incorrectness Is Just a Strategy”, in Time:
- A survey at Yale University had 63% of students wanting professors to issue “trigger warnings” before saying anything that some might find offensive or could cause painful emotions.
- Some people find pornography offensive.
- An offensive smell.
- Antonym: inoffensive
-
- Relating to an offense or attack, as opposed to defensive.
- 2013 June 7, Ed Pilkington, “‘Killer robots’ should be banned in advance, UN told”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 26, page 6:
- In his submission to the UN, [Christof] Heyns points to the experience of drones. Unmanned aerial vehicles were intended initially only for surveillance, and their use for offensive purposes was prohibited, yet once strategists realised their perceived advantages as a means of carrying out targeted killings, all objections were swept out of the way.
- The army's offensive capabilities. An offensive weapon.
- Antonym: defensive
-
- (sports) Having to do with play directed at scoring.
- The offensive coordinator is responsible for ordering all rushing plays.
Usage notes
- When the second syllable is emphasized, "offensive" is defined as "insulting". When the first syllable is emphasized, it refers to the attacker in a conflict or a sport.
Synonyms
- aggressive
- invidious (Intending to cause envious offense)
Derived terms
- counter-offensive
- inoffensive
- nonoffensive
- offensive back
- offensive foul
- offensive line
- offensive line of scrimmage
- offensively
- offensiveness
- offensive tackle
- offensive zone
- unoffensive
Related terms
- offend
- offense
Collocations
with nouns
- offensive content
- offensive language
- offensive material
- offensive word
- offensive comment
- offensive remark
- offensive statement
- offensive speech
- offensive joke
- offensive humor
- offensive image
- offensive picture
- offensive art
- offensive behavior
- offensive conduct
- offensive act
- offensive action
Translations
causing offense
|
relating to attack, offense
|
team sports: having to do with play directed at scoring
|
Noun
offensive (countable and uncountable, plural offensives)
- (countable, military) An attack.
- The Marines today launched a major offensive.
- 1939 January, Lin Yu, “The "China Incident"”, in Philippine Magazine, volume XXXVI, number 1, OCLC 27980103, page 121:
- In Central Hupeh, the Japanese launched another offensive from the Kingshan region, but instead of moving southwestward to cooperate with another column of theirs to capture Shasi, this column swerved to the northwest and succeeded in capturing Chunghsiang on the Han River.
- (uncountable) The posture of attacking or being able to attack.
- He took the offensive in the press, accusing his opponent of corruption.
Derived terms
- charm offensive
- counter-offensive
- ground offensive
- prawn cocktail offensive
- take the offensive
Translations
an attack
|
posture of attack
|
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
Further reading
- offensive in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
- offensive in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911
Danish
Adjective
offensive
- plural and definite singular attributive of offensiv
French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɔ.fɑ̃.siv/
- Homophone: offensives
Audio (file)
Etymology 1
First attested 1417; formed from offense, from Latin offensare, present active infinitive of offenso (“I strike against”).
Noun
offensive f (plural offensives)
- (military) offensive (an attack)
Derived terms
- offensive terrestre
Descendants
- → German: Offensive
Etymology 2
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Adjective
offensive
- feminine singular of offensif
Further reading
- “offensive”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
German
Pronunciation
Audio (file)
Adjective
offensive
- inflection of offensiv:
- strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
- strong nominative/accusative plural
- weak nominative all-gender singular
- weak accusative feminine/neuter singular
Italian
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /of.fenˈsi.ve/
- Rhymes: -ive
- Hyphenation: of‧fen‧sì‧ve
Adjective
offensive
- feminine plural of offensivo
Noun
offensive f
- plural of offensiva
Norwegian Bokmål
Adjective
offensive
- definite singular/plural of offensiv
Norwegian Nynorsk
Adjective
offensive
- definite singular/plural of offensiv
Swedish
Adjective
offensive
- absolute definite natural masculine singular of offensiv.