in the offing vs next

in the offing

prep
  • Within the area of the sea known as the offing; at a considerable distance from land, but visible from shore, often in reference to an approaching ship. 

  • Soon to come; likely to happen; in the foreseeable future; projected to occur; on the horizon; in the wind. 

  • At a distance, but visible. 

next

adv
  • In a time, place, rank or sequence closest or following. 

  • On the first subsequent occasion. 

  • So as to follow in time or sequence something previously mentioned. 

adj
  • Nearest in order, succession, or rank; immediately following (or sometimes preceding) in order. 

  • Nearest in place or position, having nothing similar intervening; adjoining. 

  • Nearest in relationship. (See also next of kin.) 

noun
  • The one that follows after this one. 

det
  • Closest in the future, or closest but one if the closest is very soon; of days, sometimes thought to specifically refer to the instance closest to seven days (one week) in the future. 

  • Denotes the one immediately following the current or most recent one. 

How often have the words in the offing and next occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )