Main Entry:

¹off·set

Pronunciation:

\ˈȯf-ˌset\

Function:

noun

Date:

circa 1555

1 aarchaic : outset, start b: cessation2 a (1): a short prostrate lateral shoot arising from the base of a plant (2): a small bulb arising from the base of another bulb b: a lateral or collateral branch (as of a family or race) : offshoot c: a spur from a range of hills3 a: a horizontal ledge on the face of a wall formed by a diminution of its thickness above b: displacement c: an abrupt change in the dimension or profile of an object or the part set off by such change4: something that sets off to advantage or embellishes something else : foil5: an abrupt bend in an object by which one part is turned aside out of line6: something that serves to counterbalance or to compensate for something else ; especially : either of two balancing ledger items7 a: unintentional transfer of ink (as from a freshly printed sheet) b: a printing process in which an inked impression from a plate is first made on a rubber-blanketed cylinder and then transferred to the paper being printed

— offset adjective or adverb