noun
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a stupid or deliberately foolish person
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informal a thug hired to commit acts of violence or intimidation, esp in an industrial dispute
noun
Usage
What does goon mean? Don't be a goon! That is, don't be a "fool" or an "oaf."Hired muscle, gangsters, and tough-guy hockey players are often called goons, too.
Etymology
Origin of goon
First recorded in 1920–25; shortened from dialectal gooney, variant of obsolete gony “a simpleton” (of unknown origin); influenced by the comic-strip character Alice the Goon in the series Thimble Theatre by E. C. Segar (1894–1938), American cartoonist
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Private sector workers won the right to form unions and strike under the National Labor Relations Board, largely ending the union-busting and goon violence of decades past.
From Salon • Jul. 30, 2025
“I’m not sure how 1 will feel about the goon squad,” Lieutenant Middleton wrote.
From New York Times • May 29, 2024
The book follows Freddy Otash, a real-life Los Angeles Police officer, private eye, Hollywood fixer and head goon for Confidential magazine through 1950s Hollywood.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2023
Their protests appear spontaneous and leaderless, which means there is no infrastructure for the Iranian goon squads to crack.
From Washington Post • Oct. 13, 2022
“Him and his goon squad are jerks,” Hena replies.
From "Finding Junie Kim" by Ellen Oh
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
