no offense
idiom
—used before a statement to indicate that one does not want to cause a person or group to feel hurt, angry, or upset by what is about to be said
No offense, but I think you are mistaken.
Examples of no offense in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Looks-wise, he is described as resembling the songwriter Hoagy Carmichael, who, no offense, was hardly Sean Connery.
—
Jordan Hoffman, EW.com, 27 June 2025
The film stars Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes, with Comer and Fiennes in particular being praised for their performances in the film (no offense to Taylor-Johnson).
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 19 June 2025
There is no offense versus defense, and no one-on-ones are allowed in these sessions.
—Brad Biggs, Chicago Tribune, 26 Mar. 2025
And no offense to the Village, but the panoramic views of both the lake and gardens put Seventh Avenue to shame—and are guaranteed to inspire FOMO in every single one of your Instagram followers.
—Air Mail, 17 May 2025
Hill seemingly took no offense, posting later that the Colts should have left it up.
—Jayna Bardahl, New York Times, 16 May 2025
The song emerged from a jam session between Wonder and the late British guitar player Jeff Beck, who recorded his own (lesser, no offense) version soon thereafter.
—Jordan Hoffman, EW.com, 13 May 2025
Using runway moments, real-life trends, and celebrity styling, Laia has discussed everything from cargo pants to the WWS (working woman’s shoe, duh) to how to de-grandma your brooch—no offense to grandmas!
—Chelsea Daniel, Vogue, 13 May 2025
Duplass slides easily into his role an ineffectual loser (no offense).
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Jordan Hoffman, EW.com, 27 June 2025
The film stars Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes, with Comer and Fiennes in particular being praised for their performances in the film (no offense to Taylor-Johnson).
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 19 June 2025
There is no offense versus defense, and no one-on-ones are allowed in these sessions.
—Brad Biggs, Chicago Tribune, 26 Mar. 2025
And no offense to the Village, but the panoramic views of both the lake and gardens put Seventh Avenue to shame—and are guaranteed to inspire FOMO in every single one of your Instagram followers.
—Air Mail, 17 May 2025
Hill seemingly took no offense, posting later that the Colts should have left it up.
—Jayna Bardahl, New York Times, 16 May 2025
The song emerged from a jam session between Wonder and the late British guitar player Jeff Beck, who recorded his own (lesser, no offense) version soon thereafter.
—Jordan Hoffman, EW.com, 13 May 2025
Using runway moments, real-life trends, and celebrity styling, Laia has discussed everything from cargo pants to the WWS (working woman’s shoe, duh) to how to de-grandma your brooch—no offense to grandmas!
—Chelsea Daniel, Vogue, 13 May 2025
Duplass slides easily into his role an ineffectual loser (no offense).
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“No offense.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/no%20offense. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share