gofer

American  

[goh-fer] / ˈgoʊ fər /

Or go-fer,

noun

Slang.

1. an employee whose chief duty is running errands.

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gofer British  

/ ˈɡəʊfə /

noun

1. slang  an employee or assistant whose duties include menial tasks such as running errands

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Etymology

Origin of gofer

1965–70; respelling of go for (verb phrase), with -er representing both vowel reduction in for and -er ¹

Example Sentences

Allegations that the WWE turned a blind eye to rampant abuse of "ring boys" — minors taken on by the wrestling promotion to work as gofers — have plagued the company for decades.

From Salon

He began his career in the film industry in the mid-1930s working as an extra and was a gofer at Denham Film Studios, where he first met Lean, an editor, in 1942.

From Los Angeles Times

Our heroine, a funny, foul-mouthed gofer who’s racking up miles driving in Bucharest, has just told her passenger about a road outside the city that has more memorials edging it than it has kilometers.

From New York Times

The two first met at a Western Sizzlin steakhouse in Memphis, at a benefit for Don Ezell, the longtime gofer at Sun Records.

From New York Times

He entered show business at age 16 as a TV mailroom gofer.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

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