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Infamous vs Offensive - What's the difference?

infamous | offensive | Related terms |

Infamous is a related term of offensive.


As an adjective infamous

is having a bad reputation, disreputable; of bad report; notoriously vile; detestable; widely known, especially for something bad.

As a noun offensive is

offensive (posture of attacking or being able to attack).

infamous

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • having a bad reputation, disreputable; of bad report; notoriously vile; detestable; widely known, especially for something bad
    • He was an infamous traitor.
    He was an infamous perjurer.
  • causing infamy; disgraceful
    • This infamous deed tarnishes all involved.
  • (archaic) in England / Great Britain, a judicial punishment which deprived the infamous person of certain rights; this included a prohibition against holding public office, exercising the franchise, receiving a public pension, serving on a jury, or giving testimony in a court of law.

    • Derived terms

    * infamously * infamousness * infamy

    References

    * Oxford English Dictionary

    offensive

    English

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • Causing offense; arousing a visceral reaction of disgust, anger, or hatred.
  • Relating to an offense or attack, as opposed to defensive.
  • * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-07, author= Ed Pilkington
    • , volume=188, issue=26, page=6, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly) , title= ‘Killer robots’ should be banned in advance, UN told , passage=In his submission to the UN, [Christof] Heyns points to the experience of drones. Unmanned aerial vehicles were intended initially only for surveillance, and their use for offensive purposes was prohibited, yet once strategists realised their perceived advantages as a means of carrying out targeted killings, all objections were swept out of the way.}}
  • Having to do with play directed at scoring.

    • Usage notes

    * Nouns to which "offensive" is often applied: content, material, language, word, comment, remark, statement, speech, joke, humor, image, picture, art, behavior, conduct, act, action. * When the second syllable is emphasized, "offensive" is defined as "insulting". When the first syllable is emphasized, it refers to the attacker of a conflict or the team in a sport who possesses the ball.

    Synonyms

    * aggressive * invidious (Intending to cause envious offense)

    Antonyms

    * inoffensive (not causing offense or disgust ) * defensive (relating or causing defence )

    Derived terms

    * offensiveness

    Related terms

    * offend

    Noun

  • (countable, military) An attack.
    • The Marines today launched a major offensive .
  • (uncountable) The posture of attacking or being able to attack.
    • He took the offensive in the press, accusing his opponent of corruption.

    External links

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