offside

UK/ɒfˈsaɪd/US/ɒfˈsaɪd/

nounB2+Rare in speech; mostly a word you read · #12,707 of 15,258neutral

Other forms: offsides

Offside is the football rule about standing too far forward. Caught offside, an offside goal, the offside trap.

It exists to stop players waiting by the goal, and it is judged at the moment the ball is played rather than when it arrives, which is why so few people watching agree with the decision. In Britain, the offside of a car is the side away from the kerb.

Definitions of offside

1nounoffsideThe football rule about standing too far forward.B2+
“The goal was disallowed for offside, and the home fans booed the referee.”

offside is a rule.

Where it comes from

Off plus side. The word is recorded in the earliest written football rules of the nineteenth century.

From off- + side. Compare German Abseite (“remote area, backside”), German abseits (“out of the way, apart, aside”), Dutch afzijdig (“neutral, impartial”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Sports & Fitness

Practise this word

offside in the wild

In rugby football, the offside rule prohibits players from gaining an advantage from being too far forward.
Offside (rugby)
For determining offside, the position of the puck and players must be considered to be in the neutral or offensive zone.
Offside (ice hockey)
When an offside violation occurs, a linesman will stop play.
Offside (ice hockey)
There is currently no offside rule in field hockey.
Offside (field hockey)
There were prior offside rules, rules that restricted the positioning of players from the attacking team in a way similar to the offside rule in association football.
Offside (field hockey)

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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