offense

Definition of offense

Alternative spellings

• (Commonwealth English) offence (plural: offences)

Etymology

From Latin offensa ("a striking against; displeasure; injury")

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ʌˈfɛns/, /ɒˈfɛns/, SAMPA: /V"fEns/
• Audio (US) ^[?]

Noun

offense (plural offenses) (US)

1. The act of offending; a crime or sin; an affront or injury.
2. The state of being offended or displeased; anger; displeasure.
3. (team sports) A strategy and tactics employed when in position to score; contrasted with defense.
4. (team sports) The portion of a team dedicated to scoring when in position to do so; contrasted with defense.

Antonyms

• defense

Derived terms

• hanging offense

Related terms

• offensive
• offend
• offender
• defense

See also

• crime
• sin

Further reading

In law, an offence is a violation of the penal law. An offence can range from a simple misdemeanour (e.g. a traffic violation) to a felony (e.g. capital murder). In common law usage, 'offence' differs from 'crime' in that there is typically no victim, but the action remains prohibited by statute.