Dictionary.com
definitions

RELATED CONTENT

Wanna Get Away? 9 Synonyms For Screwing Up
We’ve all had moments where we’ve really and truly screwed something up. An epic mistake (OK, maybe not on a historic, global scale like the February 26, 2017 Oscars). But still, we’re human, and mistakes do happen. There are a lot of words to describe things going south in a hurry. We’ve gathered a few here. You’ll notice they’re all very close in definition. Maybe …
READ MORE
awesomesauce
Read more in this article about some frequently asked questions and fun facts related to our definitions.
READ MORE

RELATED WORDS

flub, err, botch, miscalculate, blunder, snarl, slip, bungle

Origin of goof

1915–20; apparently variant of obsolete goff dolt < Middle French goffe awkward, stupid
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for goof

Contemporary Examples of goof

Historical Examples of goof

  • It was the external field around the hull that had decided to goof off this time.

    Unwise Child

    Gordon Randall Garrett

  • He didnt know which way to turn, because he didnt know which way the goof was going to pull up.

    Test Pilot

    David Goodger (goodger@python.org)

  • What kind of psionic force would it take to make so many people in the United States goof up the way they were doing?

    Occasion for Disaster

    Gordon Randall Garrett

  • Or was p. 39 this all goof ball sentiment in his own mind, to make himself feel real modest?

    The Planet Strappers

    Raymond Zinke Gallun

British Dictionary definitions for goof

goof

noun

a foolish error or mistake
a stupid person

verb

to bungle (something); botch
(intr; often foll by about or around) to fool (around); mess (about)
(tr) to dope with drugs
(intr often foll by off) US and Canadian to waste time; idle

Word Origin for goof

C20: probably from (dialect) goff simpleton, from Old French goffe clumsy, from Italian goffo, of obscure origin
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for goof
n.

1916, American English, "stupid person," perhaps a variant of English dialect goff "foolish clown" (1869), from 16c. goffe, probably from Middle French goffe "awkward, stupid," of uncertain origin. Or English goffe may be from Middle English goffen "speak in a frivolous manner," possibly from Old English gegaf "buffoonery," and gaffetung "scolding." Sense of "a blunder" is c.1954, probably influenced by gaffe.

v.

"waste time," 1932; "make a mistake," 1941, from goof (n.). Goof off "loaf" is also from 1941. Related: Goofed; goofing.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper