goon

American  

[goon] / gun /

noun

1. Informal. a hired hoodlum or thug.

2. Slang.

   1. a stupid, foolish, or awkward person.

   2. a rough, coarse person; roughneck.

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goon ¹ British  

/ ɡuːn /

noun

1. a stupid or deliberately foolish person

2. informal a thug hired to commit acts of violence or intimidation, esp in an industrial dispute

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goon ² British  

noun

1. informal cheap wine packaged in casks or boxed

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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

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

The big “IF” — as in “imaginary friend” — in John Krasinski’s treacly kids dramedy is a grizzly-sized purple goon who goes by the name Blue.

From New York Times • May 16, 2024

And a goon reiterates the idea more bluntly: “This is America, big guy. Everybody needs more money.”

From Los Angeles Times • May 12, 2023

You don’t hear about this race as much as other competitive ones, because neither of the candidates is a viscerally comical goon or chilling creep who’d make for good copy.

From Slate • Oct. 1, 2022

Neither of us had told my father that she’d bitten Dusty’s goon that night at the marina when he snuck up and grabbed her.

From "Flush" by Carl Hiaasen

Related Words

• hooligan
• thug