Brewer's: Slander, Offence

Slander is a stumbling-block or something which trips a person up (Greek, skandalon, through the French esclandre). Offence is the striking of our foot against a stone (Latin, ob fendo, as scopulum offendit navis, the ship struck against a rock).

Source: Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, E. Cobham Brewer, 1894
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