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of·fal

(ôfəl, ŏfəl)

1. Waste material or byproducts from a manufacturing process.

2. Meat, including internal organs (such as liver, heart, or kidney) and extremities (such as tail or hooves), that has been taken from a part other than skeletal muscles. Also called variety meat.

3. Refuse; rubbish.

[Middle English : of-, off (from Old English, from of; see apo- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots) + fal, fall.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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