offspring

C1 Topic:Family & Relationships

Also spelled off-spring

US /ˈɔfspɹɪŋ/ UK /ˈɒfspɹɪŋ/ See IPA manual

Freq #10867

Meanings

1

noun
A person's child or children.

They are the offspring of Italian immigrants.
2

noun
The young of an animal or plant.

The female bird feeds her offspring several times a day.
3

noun
Something produced as a result of something else.

This new festival is the offspring of a small local fair.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a person's child or children. child children issue

2 noun · the young of an animal or... young

3 noun · something produced as a... materialization

Opposites

ancestors father forbear forebear forefather genitor mother parent progenitor

Word family

Forms offsprings

Derived forms grandoffspringoffspringless

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

female offspring
a female child or descendant

Adjective + noun

Etymology

From Middle English ofspring, from Old English ofspring (“offspring, descendants, posterity”), equivalent to off- + spring. Compare Icelandic afspringur (“offspring”). More at off, spring.

ofspring Old English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Family & Relationships Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# offspring

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈɔfspɹɪŋ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈɒfspɹɪŋ/
**Frequency rank:** 10867

## Meanings
1. A person's child or children.
2. The young of an animal or plant.
3. Something produced as a result of something else.

## Examples
- They are the offspring of Italian immigrants.
- The female bird feeds her offspring several times a day.
- This new festival is the offspring of a small local fair.

## Antonyms
- ancestors
- father
- forbear
- forebear
- forefather
- genitor
- mother
- parent
- progenitor

## Derived Forms
- grandoffspring
- offspringless

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: ofspring

## Etymology
From Middle English ofspring, from Old English ofspring (“offspring, descendants, posterity”), equivalent to off- + spring. Compare Icelandic afspringur (“offspring”). More at off, spring.

## AI Etymology
Offspring is from Middle English ofspring, from Old English ofspring (“offspring, descendants, posterity”), equivalent to off- + spring. Compare Icelandic afspringur (“offspring”). More at off, spring. Important historical forms include Middle English ofspring, and Old English ofspring. In present-day use, it can mean a person's child or children, or the young of an animal or plant. Derived formations include grandoffspring, offspringless.

## Topics
- Family & Relationships
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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