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Showing results for in the offing. Search instead for Enfeoffing.
Synonyms

in the offing

Idioms  

  1. In the near or immediate future; soon to come. For example, Jan was delighted that exams were finished and graduation was in the offing. This expression originally meant “in the part of the ocean visible between shore and horizon”; its figurative use dates from the late 1700s. Also see in the wind.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

OK, a nuclear attack isn’t in the offing.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026

Knowing that an indictment was in the offing, Heppner had consulted Claude for help on a defense strategy.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 6, 2026

Given the mean target price was £13.52 before today’s release, below the current price, upgrades are most likely in the offing.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 26, 2026

A sustainably higher multiple could be in the offing if the company can go from a slow-growth auto maker in a competitive and cyclical business to a maker of robots.

From Barron's • Feb. 6, 2026

If Meereen knew that a wedding was in the offing, that alone might buy her a few nights’ respite, even if Hizdahr’s efforts came to naught.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.