Offing
/ˈɒfɪŋ/noun
The part of the sea visible from shore, beyond the immediate coastline.
Did you know?Offing is a nautical word tied to **off**, meaning “away from the shore,” and its modern sense of “in the offing” originally meant something visible out at sea, not just “coming soon.”
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
of
“away, away from”
Middle English
ME
off
“away, at a distance”
19th Century
English
offing
“the part of the sea off the land, visible from shore”
Modern English
English
in the offing
“likely to happen soon or to be expected”