offset
UK[ˈɒfset]US[ˈɔːfset]
v
To use one thing, especially a cost or benefit, to cancel or reduce the effect of another.
n
Something that balances, counteracts, or compensates for something else.
n
A method of printing in which ink is transferred from a plate to a rubber surface and then to paper.
Morpheme Breakdown
off
set
off
away, from, down
set
to cause to sit, place, put
Etymology
The word "offset" is a compound formed from two common Old English elements. Literally, it meant to "set off" or "set away," originally used in horticulture to describe a shoot or sprout "set off" from the main stem of a plant. This concrete image of a lateral growth balancing the main plant evolved into the abstract financial and general sense of one thing counterbalancing another. The printing term is a later technical development, referring to the process where the ink is "set off" from the plate onto an intermediary cylinder.
Analysis
Structure: off + set
- off (Old English, adverbial/prefix meaning "away, from, down")
- set (Old English, verb meaning "to cause to sit, place, put")
Examples
The company planted trees to offset its carbon emissions.
The advantages of the new system are an offset to its high initial cost.
The brochure was produced using high-quality offset printing.