goatee

American  

[goh-tee] / goʊˈti /

noun

• goatees
  plural

1. a man's beard trimmed to a tuft or point on the chin.

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goatee British  

/ ɡəʊˈtiː /

noun

1. a pointed tuftlike beard on the chin

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• goateed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• goatees
  plural

Etymology

Origin of goatee

1835–45, goat (from its resemblance to a goat's tufted chin) + -ee, probably as spelling variant of -y ², -ie, though stressed as if formed with -ee

Explanation

A goatee is a narrow beard. If your uncle shaves his cheeks and the sides of his chin, leaving just a strip of hair under his mouth, you can compliment him on his goatee. Some facial hair purists say that it's only a goatee if there's no mustache involved — the combination of a narrow beard and mustache can also be called a "Van Dyke." Others are fine with describing any beard that doesn't extend fully across the face from ear to ear as a goatee. This term comes from the tufted beards that many goats have, and it was originally known as a goaty.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

goatee goatees

Born into a poor family in the western province of Artemisa on April 28, 1932, Valdes was instantly recognizable by his white goatee and green military fatigues.

From Barron's ● Jun. 21, 2026

That’s when I fell in love with those goatee and mullet-sporting risk-takers, the dreamers and pioneers whose fortunes seemed directly tied to the growth of the game.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026

Kelly Hall had a long goatee and was wearing a t-shirt with the slogan “Government Watch List” when he went to vote on Tuesday.

From Slate ● May 20, 2026

Our unnamed protagonist, a slacker with a goatee, is no protester.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 4, 2026

Probably that spiteful-looking security guard with the patchy goatee I saw before.

From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon

Various reports say about one-third of American men are fully bearded, with the numbers inching toward half if you count goatees and heavy stubble.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026

I have had various beards and goatees over most of the 50 years of our marriage.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 24, 2023

“Can this be right? And I mean full beards, not stubble, goatees or moustaches - the full works.”

From The Guardian ● Jun. 27, 2018

You can basically drag it all over your face haphazardly to eliminate all your facial hair, or use it to “edge” and “shape” for styles like goatees.

From Slate ● Mar. 1, 2018

They wore striped pants, loud ties, sideburns, goatees.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides