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

Explanation

A gofer is someone whose job involves running various errands. A gofer in an office might deliver messages and fetch coffee, among other tasks. If you work as a gofer on a movie set, your job might include delivering updated script pages to actors, buying crew members lunch, or tracking down small props or costume parts. The word describes anyone whose job is as a "guy (or gal) Friday," basically doing any little task that needs to be done. The word was coined in the 1950s, from the sense of "go for," and echoing the word gopher.

Example Sentences

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 • Sep. 5, 2024

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 • Jan. 6, 2024

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

From Seattle Times • Aug. 11, 2023

Nauta frequently served as a kind of gofer, fetching any items the president might need throughout the day and tidying up the room, the former staffer said.

From Washington Post • Oct. 13, 2022

He tried to keep himself calm, but by the time a gofer commed him and squirted directions to the main ballroom, he was a wreck.

From Super Man and the Bug Out by Doctorow, Cory

Related Words

• gopher