Search Result for "offence": 
Wordnet 3.0

NOUN (5)

1. the action of attacking an enemy;
[syn: offense, offence, offensive]

2. the team that has the ball (or puck) and is trying to score;
[syn: offense, offence]

3. a feeling of anger caused by being offended;
- Example: "he took offence at my question"
[syn: umbrage, offense, offence]

4. a lack of politeness; a failure to show regard for others; wounding the feelings or others;
[syn: discourtesy, offense, offence, offensive activity]

5. (criminal law) an act punishable by law; usually considered an evil act;
- Example: "a long record of crimes"
[syn: crime, offense, criminal offense, criminal offence, offence, law-breaking]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Offence \Of*fence"\, n. See Offense. [1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Offense \Of*fense"\, Offence \Of*fence"\, n. [F., fr. L. offensa. See Offend.] 1. The act of offending in any sense; esp., a crime or a sin, an affront or an injury. [1913 Webster] Who was delivered for our offenses, and was raised again for our justification. --Rom. iv. 25. [1913 Webster] I have given my opinion against the authority of two great men, but I hope without offense to their memories. --Dryden. [1913 Webster] 2. The state of being offended or displeased; anger; displeasure; as, to cause offense. [1913 Webster] He was content to give them just cause of offense, when they had power to make just revenge. --Sir P. Sidney. [1913 Webster] 3. A cause or occasion of stumbling or of sin. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] Woe to that man by whom the offense cometh! --Matt. xviii. 7. [1913 Webster] 4. In any contest, the act or process of attacking as contrasted with the act of defending; the offensive; as, to go on the offense. [PJC] 5. (Sports) The members of a team who have the primary responsibility to score goals, in contrast to those who have the responsibility to defend, i.e. to prevent the opposing team from scoring goal. [PJC] Note: This word, like expense, is often spelled with a c. It ought, however, to undergo the same change with expense, the reasons being the same, namely, that s must be used in offensive as in expensive, and is found in the Latin offensio, and the French offense. [1913 Webster] To take offense, to feel, or assume to be, injured or affronted; to become angry or hostile. Weapons of offense, those which are used in attack, in distinction from those of defense, which are used to repel. [1913 Webster] Syn: Displeasure; umbrage; resentment; misdeed; misdemeanor; trespass; transgression; delinquency; fault; sin; crime; affront; indignity; outrage; insult. [1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

offence n 1: the action of attacking an enemy [syn: offense, offence, offensive] 2: the team that has the ball (or puck) and is trying to score [syn: offense, offence] [ant: defence, defending team, defense] 3: a feeling of anger caused by being offended; "he took offence at my question" [syn: umbrage, offense, offence] 4: a lack of politeness; a failure to show regard for others; wounding the feelings or others [syn: discourtesy, offense, offence, offensive activity] 5: (criminal law) an act punishable by law; usually considered an evil act; "a long record of crimes" [syn: crime, offense, criminal offense, criminal offence, offence, law-breaking]