offside
offside Lexical Profile
offside Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
In sports such as soccer, rugby, or hockey, illegally positioned ahead of the ball or puck, or beyond a specified line of play.
"The referee disallowed the goal because the striker was in an offside position when the pass was made."
British Relating to or denoting the side of a road vehicle farthest from the curb (the right side in Britain and the left side in countries that drive on the right).
"He had to replace the offside front tire after hitting a deep pothole."
Canadian Inappropriate, unfair, or out of line in behavior or remarks.
"His sharp comments during the committee meeting were completely offside and uncalled-for."
• adverb
In or into an illegal forward position ahead of the ball, puck, or line of scrimmage in various team sports.
"The winger wandered offside just as the midfielder played the through ball."
• noun
An instance of a player being illegally ahead of the ball, puck, or line of play, or the rule governing this infringement.
"The linesman raised his flag to signal an offside against the visiting team."
British The side of a vehicle or draft animal that is farthest from the curb.
"The cyclist was warned not to overtake the bus on the offside when approaching the junction."
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed in the 17th century as a compound of 'off' and 'side', originally referring to the right-hand side of a draft animal or vehicle (the side farthest from the driver walking alongside on the left) before being adopted into team sports in the 19th century.