guv

American  

[guhv] / gʌv /

noun

Chiefly British Informal.

1. term of address used to a man, especially by a younger man, boy, employee, or social inferior.

2. governor.

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guv British  

/ ɡʌv, ˈɡʌvnə /

noun

1. an informal name for governor

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Etymology

Origin of guv

First recorded in 1850–55; by shortening and respelling

Example Sentences

"As a kid, I was used to watching these wonderful black-and-white films with my nana - 'Cor blimey, guv’na, let’s push through the war'," Graham joked, adopting an exaggerated Cockney accent.

From BBC

Lord Arbuthnot continues: "Since the government owned the Post Office, I had assumed they would be in a position to sort it out - but they were saying ‘no, not me guv’."

From BBC

And you look at all those innocent people strolling around the world looking so healthy and fit and happy and you think: 'You don't know guv, what's coming down the road.'

From BBC

The prime minister, who only arrived in parliament in 2015, really cannot do the "don't blame me guv routine" anymore, they argue.

From BBC

With GUV light, “you can get very high rates of air disinfection with relatively little air movement”, says Milton.

From Scientific American