offspring

English

Etymology

From Middle English ofspring, from Old English ofspring (“offspring, descendants, posterity”), equivalent to off- +‎ spring. Compare Icelandic afspringur (“offspring”). More at off, spring.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɒfspɹɪŋ/

  • Audio (Southern England)

    (file)

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈɔfspɹɪŋ/, /ˈɑfspɹɪŋ/, enPR: äfʹsprĭng
• Rhymes: -ɒfspɹɪŋ, -ɔfspɹɪŋ, -ɑfspɹɪŋ

Noun

offspring (plural offspring or offsprings)

1. A person's daughter or son; a person's child.
2. Any of a person's descendants, including of further generations.
3. An animal or plant's progeny or young.
   • 2013 May-June, Katrina G. Claw, “Rapid Evolution in Eggs and Sperm”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3:

     In plants, the ability to recognize self from nonself plays an important role in fertilization, because self-fertilization will result in less diverse offspring than fertilization with pollen from another individual.

4. (figuratively) Anything produced; the result of an entity's efforts.

   Artists often treasure their works as their immortal offspring.

5. (computing) A process launched by another process.

Usage notes

• The plural offsprings is mainly used for the computing sense.

Synonyms

• (daughter(s) and/or son(s)): baby/babies, child/children, fruit of one's loins, issue (plural only), get, kid/kids
• (all descendants): binary clone, descendants, fruit of one's loins, get, lineage, progeny, seed

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of "daughter(s) and/or son(s)"): genitor (rare), parent, progenitor, father (male), mother (female)
• (antonym(s) of "descendants"): ancestors, forbears/forebears, forefathers

Derived terms

Translations