taking offense

Meanings

1. 1phrasephrasal verb

   Feeling hurt or angry because of something someone said or did, often when no insult was meant.

   Grammar: Often with at or over: taking offense at a joke.

   Patterns

   • take offense at something
   • take offense when someone does something

   She is quick to take offense at harmless jokes.

   I hope you won't take offense if I decline.

   He took offense at being called young.

2. 2phrasephrasal verb

   Deciding to treat a remark as an insult and reacting to it.

   Grammar: Often with a clause: take offense that someone ignored you.

   Patterns

   • take offense that someone did something

   They took offense that no one asked for their opinion.

   Don't take offense; it was only advice.

   The guests took offense at the late start.

Word forms

Common combinations

take offense at

Don't take offense at what he said.

easily take offense

She easily takes offense when corrected.

no offense taken

No offense taken, I know you meant well.

quick to take offense

He's quick to take offense at criticism.

take offense on someone's behalf

I took offense on my sister's behalf.

Synonyms and how they differ

feel insulted

Feel insulted is a plain description, while taking offense often suggests quick or oversensitive reactions.

be upset

Be upset is general sadness or anger, not necessarily caused by an insult.

bristle

Bristle describes visible, immediate irritation, whereas taking offense can be quiet.

Opposites

Word family

offense noun

hurt feelings or a wrongdoing

offend verb

to hurt someone's feelings

offensive adjective

causing hurt or anger

offended adjective

feeling hurt or angry

Commonly confused: taking offense or give offense?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “taking offense”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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