joe
noun
joe
1 American
[joh]
/ dʒoʊ /
noun
Informal.
Joe
2
American
[joh]
/ dʒoʊ /
noun
-
Joes
plural
-
(sometimes lowercase) fellow; guy.
the average Joe who works for a living.
-
Informal. a personification of a typical, often unprepossessing representative of an occupation, personality trait, state of being, etc., that is expressed, sometimes metonymically, as a mock surname.
Joe Lunchbucket working hard at some factory and paying his taxes year after year; political con artists relying on the gullibility of Joe Schmo.
-
a male given name, form of Joseph.
Joe
British
/ dʒəʊ /
noun
-
a man or fellow
-
a GI; soldier
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of joe
First recorded in 1840–50; of uncertain origin
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.
See Examples For:
Thankfully, standing inside the climate-controlled walls of the Line hotel’s lobby and behind a cup of joe from its Alfred Coffee, there’s a smidgen of comfort.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 21, 2026
The sloppy joe at Town Hall Delicatessen in South Orange, N.J., isn’t the textbook version you’re probably imagining.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Sig’s baby was born 70 years ago this autumn, on Nov. 17, when he first demonstrated how it could alert any ordinary joe schmoe listening to the radio.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2024
Their coffee remains “Black as hell, strong as death, sweet as love,” a Turkish proverb that also encompasses the die-hard attitude that so many folks have for their cup of joe.
From Salon ● Dec. 9, 2023
When he wasn’t rowing, studying, or sleeping, he was working, and just barely keeping himself clothed and fed doing it. joe found it comfortable to be around McMillin.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
This will be Tandy's sixth different centre partnership in his 13th international in charge, with Joe Hawkins or Ben Thomas having being given the number 12 jersey in the previous 12 internationals.
From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026
The Bengals needed overtime to beat one-win Tennessee, but Joe Burrow played great.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026
One of my great shortcomings is I’m not good at writing political music, which I wish I was because I love Neil Young and Joe Strummer and Chuck D and Billie Holiday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026
A member of the Laguna Pueblo tribe, she had served as the secretary of the interior under former president Joe Biden, the first Native American to serve as a US cabinet secretary.
From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026
He glared at her, then at Frank and Joe.
From "A Monster of a Mystery (The Hardy Boys: Secret Files, #5)" by Franklin W. Dixon
Spending 25 years of their lives “yes, and-ing” has also come with lessons that have helped the Joes offstage.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
And then we look at how regular Joes and Janes could invest in the assets the pros are avoiding using regular, low-cost exchange-traded funds.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 13, 2026
"They are a bunch of guys that never quit. You can call them the Average Joes but I say they are the Above Average Joes."
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2025
In some of Simpson’s later ads, average Janes and Joes cheered him on as he ran, yelling, “Go, O.J., Go!”
From New York Times ● Apr. 11, 2024
Joes with on the floor of my mom’s hair salon.
From "Where Things Come Back" by John Corey Whaley
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
