| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| offer |
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| SYLLABICATION: | of·fer |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  ô f r,  fr |
| VERB: | Inflected forms: of·fered, of·fer·ing, of·fers
| | TRANSITIVE VERB: | 1. To present for acceptance or rejection; proffer: offered me a drink. 2a. To put forward for consideration; propose: offer an opinion. b. To present in order to meet a need or satisfy a requirement: offered new statistics in order to facilitate the decision-making process. 3a. To make available; afford: The situation offers us the opportunity to learn more. b. To present for sale. c. To provide; furnish: a hotel that offers conference facilities. 4. To propose as payment; bid. 5. To present as an act of worship: offer up prayers. 6. To exhibit readiness or desire (to do something); volunteer: offered to carry the packages. 7. To put up; mount: partisans who offered strong resistance to the invaders. 8. To threaten: offered to leave without them if they didn't hurry. 9. To produce or introduce on the stage: The repertory group is offering two new plays this season. | | INTRANSITIVE VERB: | 1. To present an offering in worship or devotion. 2. To make an offer or proposal, especially of marriage. 3. To present itself: “This plan was dropped, because of its risk, and because a better offered” (T.E. Lawrence). | | NOUN: | 1. The act of offering: an offer of assistance. 2. Something, such as a suggestion, proposal, bid, or recommendation, that is offered. 3. Law A proposal that if accepted constitutes a legally binding contract. 4. The condition of being offered, especially for sale: thousands of bushels of wheat on offer. 5a. An attempt; a try. b. A show of intention. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English offren, from Old English offrian, to present in worship, and from Old French offrir, to propose, present, both from Latin offerre, to present, offer : ob-, to; see ob– + ferre, to bring; see bher-1 in Appendix I. | | OTHER FORMS: | offer·er, offer·or —NOUN
| | SYNONYMS: | offer, proffer, tender2, present2 These verbs mean to put before another for acceptance or rejection. Offer is the basic general term in this group: offered us some tea; a store that offered sizable discounts. Proffer implies voluntary action motivated especially by courtesy or generosity: “Mr. van der Luyden . . . proffered to Newland low-voiced congratulations” (Edith Wharton). To tender is to offer formally: tendered her respects; tendered my resignation. Present suggests formality and often a measure of ceremony: “A footman entered, and presented . . . some mail on a silver tray” (Winston Churchill).
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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