offshore

1 of 3

adverb

off·​shore ˈȯf-ˈshȯr How to pronounce offshore (audio)
1
: from the shore : seaward
also : at a distance from the shore
2
: outside the country : abroad

offshore

2 of 3

adjective

off·​shore ˈȯf-ˌshȯr How to pronounce offshore (audio)
1
: coming or moving away from the shore toward the water
an offshore breeze
2
a
: situated off the shore but within waters under a country's control
offshore fisheries
b
: distant from the shore compare inshore
3
: situated or operating in a foreign country
offshore mutual funds
offshore banking

offshore

3 of 3

preposition

off·​shore ˈȯf-ˌshȯr How to pronounce offshore (audio)
: off the shore of

Examples of offshore in a Sentence

Adjective We sailed to an offshore island. He works on an offshore oil rig. They opened an offshore bank account. He traced the money to an offshore investment company.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adverb
Track and impacts The storm is expected to be located several hundred miles offshore of North Carolina on Friday afternoon, and then make landfall on or skim very close to the Outer Banks Saturday morning. Matthew Cappucci, Washington Post, 21 Sep. 2023 There are a wide variety of possible tracks for Hurricane Lee this week, but most keep the storm offshore. Dave Epstein, BostonGlobe.com, 11 Sep. 2023 The hurricane center expects Lee to make a more pronounced turn to the north this week, and the official path forecast keeps the storm well offshore of the U.S. East Coast through Friday. Leigh Morgan, al, 10 Sep. 2023 Beachgoers should look for choppy, rippled water heading offshore. Austindedios, oregonlive, 3 Sep. 2023 That’s particularly true because wind blows strongest offshore in the coldest months, when demand for heat is at its highest. New York Times, 18 Aug. 2023 As Hilary moves north, Boldt said the system could push strong offshore winds inland Sunday, which may create conditions similar to Santa Anas that are ripe for fire starts, Boldt said. Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 16 Aug. 2023 After all, what happens offshore affects communities on land, too. Justine Calma, The Verge, 5 Sep. 2023 The Joint Typhoon Warning Center projects that the storm will get closest to Hong Kong and China’s southern Guangdong Province Friday night but the center of the storm will remain offshore. Tara Subramaniam, CNN, 31 Aug. 2023
Adjective
Shakira is alleged to have used an offshore company based in a tax haven to avoid paying the tax, Barcelona prosecutors said in a statement. Compiled By Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, Arkansas Online, 27 Sep. 2023 Barcelona prosecutors have accused the pop star of using an offshore company located in a tax haven to avoid paying the tax, according to the Associated Press. Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 26 Sep. 2023 She is also being accused of using an offshore company to avoid paying taxes. Chelsea Hylton, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2023 But energy companies see the deeper offshore environment as infinitely exploitable. William Booth, Washington Post, 26 Sep. 2023 The net effect, according to the government, was $340 billion in federal tax revenue as companies and individuals repatriated hundreds of billions of dollars in offshore earnings. Matt Ford, The New Republic, 20 Sep. 2023 Here’s a look at some of the noteworthy energy bills Newsom will consider: Boosting offshore wind Assembly Bill 1373 is primarily aimed at smoothing the way for the state to erect giant offshore wind turbines off the coasts of Morro Bay and Humboldt County. Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Sep. 2023 China's currency slipped about 0.1%, with $1 recently buying more than 7.35 offshore yuan. WSJ, 8 Sep. 2023 Indeed, Wang’s analysis found that the rise in offshore rapid intensification could be due to both natural variability in the climate and human-caused climate change. Matt Simon, WIRED, 8 Sep. 2023
Preposition
The Outer Continental Shelf offshore Maine is virgin water for wind. Jeremy Beaman, Washington Examiner, 16 Jan. 2023 Bubbles emerge from a methane seep offshore Virginia. Jeffrey Marlow, Discover Magazine, 7 June 2016 The storm began organizing Friday offshore the Carolinas when two disturbances along the jet stream merged over the Southeast. Washington Post, 30 Jan. 2022 As of this writing, more than 70 container ships are idling offshore the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach because there are not enough dockworkers to unload the cargo, nor are there enough truck drivers to transport the goods. Adam Strauss, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2021 Salmon fishing has been given an additional boost by large schools of juvenile anchovies that have arrived this month offshore the Bay Area coast and in San Francisco Bay. Tom Stienstra, SFChronicle.com, 21 Aug. 2020 As for crude inventories, there are also ample stockpiles being housed in onshore tanks and vessels offshore that could hit the market as the economics of storing the crude becomes less attractive. Serene Cheong, Bloomberg.com, 20 May 2020 Echoing Lynch’s comments, Al Cook, executive vice president of Global Strategy and Business Development at Equinor, pointed out the company’s investments in carbon capture and storage near Norway, and a wind energy project offshore Scotland. Katherine Dunn, Fortune, 28 Feb. 2020 Apache has pinned high hopes on Suriname after Exxon Mobil started developing huge oil projects offshore of neighboring Guyana. Jordan Blum, Houston Chronicle, 7 Jan. 2020 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'offshore.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adverb

1720, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1769, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Preposition

1942, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of offshore was in 1720

Dictionary Entries Near offshore

Cite this Entry

“Offshore.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/offshore. Accessed 3 Oct. 2023.

Kids Definition

offshore

1 of 2 adverb
off·​shore ˈȯf-ˈshō(ə)r How to pronounce offshore (audio)
-ˈshȯ(ə)r
: from the shore : at a distance from the shore

offshore

2 of 2 adjective
off·​shore ˈȯf-ˌshō(ə)r How to pronounce offshore (audio)
-ˌshȯ(ə)r
1
: coming or moving away from the shore
an offshore breeze
2
: located off the shore
offshore islands
an offshore oil rig

More from Merriam-Webster on offshore

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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