Offendee

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person who has experienced an offense or insult from another's behavior or comments may consider themselves negatively affected by those actions
2. An individual who feels wronged or disrespected by the remarks or conduct of someone else may identify as someone who has been offended
3. A person who perceives themselves as harmed or slighted by the words or actions of another may view their experience as one of offense or grievance

Etymology: "Offendee" is a plain formation: the verb "offend" plus the suffix "-ee," which marks the person on the receiving end of an action. Verbs ending in a suffix like this often produce words such as "employee" (one who is employed) or "trainee" (one who is trained), and "offendee" follows the same pattern, meaning one who is offended. "Offend" itself comes from Latin "offendere," meaning to strike against or hit upon, which later took on the sense of causing displeasure or wrongdoing. The "-ee" suffix entered English through Anglo-Norman French, where it marked the recipient of an action, so an offendee is literally the one struck by another's words or conduct.

Synonyms: victim, target

Antonyms: offender, perpetrator