Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To offer for acceptance; tender.
  • noun The act of proffering; an offer.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To bring or put forward; hold forth.
  • To hold forth so that a person may take; offer for acceptance: as, to proffer a gift; to proffer services; to proffer friendship.
  • Synonyms To tender, volunteer, propose.
  • To dodge.
  • noun An offer made; something proposed for acceptance by another: as, proffers of peace or friendship.
  • noun In law, an offer or endeavor to proceed in an action.
  • noun An essay; an attempt.
  • noun A rabbit-burrow.
  • noun Synonyms Tender, proposal.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun An offer made; something proposed for acceptance by another; a tender.
  • noun rare Essay; attempt.
  • transitive verb To offer for acceptance; to propose to give; to make a tender of
  • transitive verb rare To essay or attempt of one's own accord; to undertake, or propose to undertake.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun An offer made; something proposed for acceptance by another; a tender; as, proffers of peace or friendship.
  • noun Essay; attempt.
  • verb To offer for acceptance; to propose to give; to make a tender of; as, to proffer a gift; to proffer services; to proffer friendship.
  • verb To essay or attempt of one’s own accord; to undertake, or propose to undertake.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb present for acceptance or rejection
  • noun a proposal offered for acceptance or rejection

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English profren, from Old French poroffrir, profrir : por-, forth (from Latin prō-; see pro–) + offrir, to offer (from Latin offerre; see offer).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English proferen, from Old French proferer, from Latin proferre ("to bring forth"), from pro ("forth") + ferre ("to bring").

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Examples

  • I think that at the very least Mark Geragos or someone on his team will have to what we call proffer to the judge -- in other words, they'll have to tell the judge really what they're thinking and what's at stake here so that the judge will know this isn't just hype, this isn't just, you know, a spin on the case, that they're really close and what evidence they have to show that.

    CNN Transcript Jun 6, 2003 2003

  • Much of what this book has to proffer is indeed true.

    Review of the Day: Scary fusenumber8 2006

  • Even if they don't, prosecutors likely can get an order to keep him detained through a "proffer" -- providing evidence to the judge that would be offered by witnesses, rather than having to put an FBI agent on the stand, said Daniel C. Richman, a professor at C.lumbia Law School in New York C.ty.

    detnews.com - Local 2010

  • The ground rules, spelled out in a standard agreement called a proffer, explained that the government could still prosecute Birkenfeld, and that at least indirectly it could use his own evidence to build a case against him.

    UBS whistleblower ended up with a prison sentence 2010

  • The two assistants were interviewed by the U.S. attorney's office for the Southern District of New York through what are called proffer agreements, in which prosecutors agree not to use their statements against them as long as they tell the truth, according to people familiar with the matter.

    Madoff Aide Allegedly Got Fake 'Tickets' of Trading 2009

  • Lourie said based upon the proffer that misprison of a felony was the best fit in terms of a plea and that Richard would just have to add a new portion to his proffer, that is, Richard would have to change his statement to the government.

    David Fiderer: Don Siegelman's Prosecutor Lied to Whom? It's Either the Court or Congress 2008

  • “A proffer is an offer into evidence,” said Bryan A.

    No Uncertain Terms William Safire 2003

  • “A proffer is an offer into evidence,” said Bryan A.

    No Uncertain Terms William Safire 2003

  • “A proffer is an offer into evidence,” said Bryan A.

    No Uncertain Terms William Safire 2003

  • “A proffer is an offer into evidence,” said Bryan A.

    No Uncertain Terms William Safire 2003

Comments

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  • Merriam-Webster Dictionary:

    Pronunciation: \ˈprä-fər\

    Function: transitive verb

    Inflected Form(s): prof·fered; prof·fer·ing \-f(ə-)riŋ\

    Etymology: Middle English profren, from Anglo-French profrer, proffrir, porofrir, from por- forth (from Latin pro-) + offrir to offer

    Date: 14th century

    : to present for acceptance

    February 14, 2008