Definitions
Wiktionary
- adj. Within the area of the sea known as the offing; at a considerable distance from land, but visible from shore, often in reference to an approaching ship.
- adj. Soon to come; likely to happen; in the foreseeable future; projected to occur; on the horizon; in the wind.
- adj. At a distance, but visible.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. visible but not nearby.
Examples
“Hereat we rejoiced and, ere an hour of the day had passed, the buildings showed plain in the offing and we asked the”
Lists
‘in the offing’ hasn't been added to any lists yet.
chained_bear See also offing. Oct 14, 2008
reesetee "The offing" (also called "offen" or "offin") is the most distant part of the sea that's still visible from shore. A person waiting for a ship would first detect its approach to shore when it was "in the offing." The phrase came to describe an event that will not occur immediately but will inevitably happen before too long. Dec 5, 2007