Offset means to balance or counteract something, making its effect less noticeable or even neutral. When you offset one thing with another, you're creating an opposing force that reduces the impact of the first thing.

In everyday situations, you might offset a mistake by doing something helpful. If you accidentally knocked over your sister's science project, you could offset that damage by helping her rebuild it carefully. A restaurant might offset higher food costs by finding cheaper suppliers for napkins and cups.

The word often appears in discussions about money and the environment. A business might offset losses in one department with profits from another. Someone concerned about pollution might offset their carbon emissions by planting trees, since trees absorb carbon dioxide that cars and factories release.

In printing and graphic design, offset refers to a specific printing technique where ink transfers from a plate to a rubber surface, then onto paper. This offset printing method produces sharp, clean images.

You can use offset as a noun too: “The scholarship provided an offset to the high cost of tuition.” Whether you're balancing a budget, reducing environmental harm, or evening out an unfair situation, offsetting means finding a way to counterbalance an effect you want to reduce.