in the offing
English edit
Pronunciation edit
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Prepositional phrase edit
- (literally, of a ship, landmass, etc.) Within the area of the sea known as the offing; at a considerable distance from land, but visible from shore, often in reference to an approaching ship.
- They could see that the ship was waiting in the offing.
- There were several small islands in the offing.
- 1900, James George Frazer, The Golden Bough, volume 3, page 252:
- If the ship that bore the sacred flame arrived too soon, it might not put in to shore, but had to cruise in the offing till the nine days were expired.
- (idiomatic) Soon to come; likely to happen; in the foreseeable future; projected to occur; on the horizon; in the wind.
- 1850, Sylvester Breakmore Beckett, The Portland Reference Book and City Directory[1]:
- We have known wives to forget that they had husbands…, especially when they supposed that a tax bill or a notification to do military duty might be in the offing!
- 2014 August 8, Rupert Christiansen, “The truth about falsettos”, in The Daily Telegraph (Review)[2], [print version: 12 August 2014, p. R8]:
- He [countertenor Anthony Roth Constanzo] also enjoys being the catalyst whereby opera fertilises other art forms: recently, he's collaborated with Japanese kabuki actors, and a project with dancers from New York City Ballet is in the offing.
- (idiomatic) At a distance, but visible.
- 1919, P[elham] G[renville] Wodehouse, My Man Jeeves:
- The moment I saw the man standing there, registering respectful attention, a weight seemed to roll off my mind. I felt like a lost child who spots his father in the offing. There was something about him that gave me confidence.
Synonyms edit
- (soon to come): imminent, instant, proximate; see also Thesaurus:impending
Translations edit
in the foreseeable future; on the horizon
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See also edit
- In the Offing, poem by Florence Earle Coates