1
as in disgusting
causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment
I find your disrespectful attitude toward religion very offensive the smell of rotting food is quite offensive
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in obnoxious
provoking or likely to provoke protest
insensitive, offensive remarks about the plight of the homeless
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in attack
the act or action of setting upon with force or violence
the primary offensive by the ground forces will commence at dawn tomorrow
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of offensive
Ben Morse, CNN Money, 17 Sep. 2025
But the team has to also be disappointed in the results from Cedric Mullins, who was added from the Baltimore Orioles only to see all of his offensive numbers dip after joining the Mets.
—Peter Chawaga, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025
Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 16 Sep. 2025
Even as its forces prepared to launch a full-scale offensive into Gaza City, several long-standing supporters of Israel — including Australia, Canada, France and the UK — are threatening to recognize a Palestinian state, joining nearly 150 other nations.
—Bloomberg Opinion, Twin Cities, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for offensive
Adjective
The sight of Brady sitting just yards away from Raiders offensive coordinator Chip Kelly was a jarring one, once again raising the question about his involvement in the day-to-day playing side of the game.
—Ben Morse, CNN Money, 17 Sep. 2025
But the team has to also be disappointed in the results from Cedric Mullins, who was added from the Baltimore Orioles only to see all of his offensive numbers dip after joining the Mets.
—Peter Chawaga, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025
Noun
Advertisement The Administration has ratcheted up its offensive on Venezuela specifically.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 16 Sep. 2025
Even as its forces prepared to launch a full-scale offensive into Gaza City, several long-standing supporters of Israel — including Australia, Canada, France and the UK — are threatening to recognize a Palestinian state, joining nearly 150 other nations.
—Bloomberg Opinion, Twin Cities, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for offensive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for offensive
Adjective
-
Don’t notice all the ways humans are disgusting.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Sep. 2025
-
But this disgusting and hateful speech is still speech and is protected by our First Amendment.—
David Lightman,
Sacbee.com,
18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Or personally obnoxious to the President.—
Ruth Marcus,
New Yorker,
21 Sep. 2025
-
Becky is perky and cheerful to the point of being obnoxious, which sometimes irks Robin.—
Lisa Stardust,
PEOPLE,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
And now Google warns that Chrome is under attack, issuing an emergency update and a recommendation to upgrade all desktop browsers immediately.—
Zak Doffman,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Ukrainian defense forces took down the 230-foot (70 meters) antenna dish to prevent Russian forces from using it to guide attacks on its territory.—
Tereza Pultarova,
Space.com,
18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
After conceding twice in the first 31 minutes, things could have become ugly.—
Jay Harris,
New York Times,
21 Sep. 2025
-
In Washington and around the Arizona Capitol, the dialogue has sometimes disintegrated into ugly finger-pointing.—
Arizona Republic,
AZCentral.com,
21 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Republicans view the proposal as unacceptable.—
Jared Gans,
The Hill,
18 Sep. 2025
-
But with the massive sums of money businesses are putting into CX, a lack of improvement should be seen as unacceptable.—
Tomas Gorny,
Forbes.com,
17 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has conducted raids at churches, homes and workplaces to swiftly arrest people deemed to be in the country without legal status.—
Ashleigh Fields,
The Hill,
21 Sep. 2025
-
It is built for speed —raids to seize high-value targets, precision strikes to cripple defenses, and, if ordered, to carry out the risky capture of strongman Nicolás Maduro and top regime officials, military analysts say.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
20 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Tom’s appointees on the task force include Lizzie (Alison Oliver), a state police officer who’s regularly tormented by her fellow cops, and Aleah (Thuso Mbedu), who wins over a suspect in interrogation by sharing awful details of her past.—
Sophie Gilbert,
The Atlantic,
17 Sep. 2025
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His college tape from Iowa showed a kid with excellent movement skills, perfect for the Niners’ offense, but with awful footwork in pass protection.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The Constitution protects a broad swath of speech, including much that the public finds objectionable.—
Marissa Meador,
IndyStar,
15 Sep. 2025
-
The objectionable verbiage is sorted into categories, with explanations and descriptions.—
James Folta,
Literary Hub,
4 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Offensive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/offensive. Accessed 23 Sep. 2025.
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