offend need not imply an intentional hurting but it may indicate merely a violation of the victim's sense of what is proper or fitting.
hoped that my remarks had not offended her
outrage implies offending beyond endurance and calling forth extreme feelings.
outraged by their accusations
affront implies treating with deliberate rudeness or contemptuous indifference to courtesy.
deeply affronted by his callousness
insult suggests deliberately causing humiliation, hurt pride, or shame.
insulted every guest at the party
Example Sentences
His comments about minority groups offended many of us. She had carefully worded her comments so as not to offend anyone. It offends me that you would make such a remark. Don't worry. I wasn't offended. I felt a little offended by their lack of respect. Some people are offended by the song's lyrics. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend. See More
Recent Examples on the WebNo one has a right to maim or kill someone because our words offend them. Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2022 Until recently, the idea of the U.S. and Japan fighting together to help Taiwan beat back a Chinese invasion was more of a theoretical notion, and Japan was often at pains not to offend China, its biggest trading partner. Peter Landers, WSJ, 5 Aug. 2022 Even live, Berens (largely) eschewed expletives and explicit topics (beyond some PG-13-level innuendo), and his playful ribbing wouldn't offend anybody. Piet Levy, Journal Sentinel, 11 Aug. 2022 And with all the belt-tightening and revenue-seeking going on at Netflix, saying no to a crazy-expensive sequel might not even offend the artists involved. John Defore, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 July 2022 The painter’s depictions of prostitutes and drunks living in miserable poverty offend the aesthetics of Norway’s art establishment and challenge the canon to the point of sabotaging his rediscovery. Leo Barraclough, Variety, 21 Apr. 2022 For the design-obsessed, there are also plenty of aesthetically pleasing fans out there that won't offend your exacting eye. Rachel Klein, Popular Mechanics, 27 June 2022 Without the burden of respectability, of shouldering stories for an entire community, the show is free to be light, frothy, melodramatic, and unafraid to offend. Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 29 July 2022 The very question of affordability seemed to offend him. Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 30 June 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Middle English offenden "to assail, violate, displease, hurt the feelings of," borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French offendre, borrowed from Latin offendere "to strike against, stumble (upon), trouble, break a rule, displease, annoy," from of-, assimilated variant of ob-ob- + -fendere presumably, "to strike, hit" (unattested without prefixes) — more at defend