English Dictionary — Definitions & Meanings

goalkeeper

noun

The player positioned to stop the opposing team from scoring by guarding the goal.

goals

adj

Internet slang for something highly admirable, worth aspiring to.

goanna

noun

Any of several large monitor lizards native to Australia.

goat

noun

A horned, bearded farm animal related to sheep, often kept for milk, meat, or wool.

goatee

noun

A small beard grown only on the chin.

gob

noun

A lump of a soft or sticky substance.

gobble

verb

To eat quickly and greedily.

gobbling

noun

The act of eating quickly and noisily.

Gobi

noun

As a proper noun, a vast desert spanning Mongolia and northern China.

goblet

noun

A drinking cup with a stem and base, without a handle.

god

noun

A supernatural being worshipped as having power over nature or human affairs.

Goda

name

A surname of Hungarian, Slovak, or Japanese origin.

Godard

name

A French surname, notably borne by filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard.

Godavari

name

A major river in South India, flowing through Maharashtra, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh.

goddam

noun

A historical nickname the French applied to English soldiers or English people generally, said to come from the English habit of swearing "God damn" — first recorded around the Hundred Years' War.

goddammit

intj

An exclamation of anger or frustration; a contracted, emphatic way of saying "God damn it."

goddamn

intj

An exclamation used to express anger, shock, frustration, or strong excitement.

goddamned

adj

Cursed or condemned, in the literal religious sense of having incurred God's damnation.

Goddard

name

A masculine given name and surname of Germanic origin, also used as a place name in the United States.

goddaughter

noun

A girl or woman for whose religious upbringing a godparent has taken responsibility.

goddess

noun

A female deity.

godfather

noun

A man who sponsors a child's baptism and promises to help guide their religious upbringing.

godforsaken

adj

Extremely bleak, remote, or dismal.

Godfrey

name

A masculine given name and surname of Germanic origin, also used as a place name in the United States and Canada.

Godiva

name

An 11th-century Anglo-Saxon noblewoman who, according to legend, rode unclothed through the streets of Coventry to protest oppressive taxation imposed by her husband.

godless

adj

Not believing in or acknowledging a god.

godlike

adj

Resembling or having qualities of a god; superhuman.

godliness

noun

The quality of being devoutly religious and morally upright.

godly

adj

Devoutly religious; pious and virtuous.

godmother

noun

A woman who sponsors a child's baptism and takes responsibility for guiding their religious upbringing.

Godot

name

A surname, familiar from the title character of Samuel Beckett's play "Waiting for Godot."

godown

noun

A warehouse, especially in South or Southeast Asia.

gods

noun

The highest, cheapest seating area in a theatre, usually right at the top and far from the stage.

godsend

noun

Something unexpected that turns out to be exactly what you needed.

Godsey

name

An English surname.

godson

noun

A boy or man whose godparent formally promised to look after his moral or religious upbringing at his baptism.

Godspeed

intj

Said to wish someone well as they set off on a journey or a difficult undertaking.

Godwin

noun

An unwritten rule of online debate: the longer a discussion goes on, the more likely someone will bring up Hitler or the Nazis, usually to unfairly attack the other side.

Godzilla

noun

A giant, fire-breathing movie monster from Japanese films, and by extension anything huge and destructive of its kind.

Goebbels

name

A German surname, most notoriously borne by Joseph Goebbels, chief propagandist for the Nazi Party and Reich Minister of Propaganda from 1933 to 1945.

Goering

name

A German surname, notably borne by Hermann Göring, a leading Nazi official.

Goes

name

A surname of Dutch or Portuguese origin, taken from place names.

Goethe

name

A German surname, most famously borne by writer and statesman Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Goetz

name

A German surname.

goff

noun

A foolish or clumsy person; a clown or simpleton (dialectal/archaic).

goggles

noun

Snug-fitting protective eyewear that seals against the face, worn for swimming, skiing, lab work, and similar activities.

gogo

noun

A stretchy fabric band used to tie back or bunch up hair.

Gogol

name

A Russian and Ukrainian surname, most famously borne by writer Nikolai Gogol.

Goguryeo

name

An ancient kingdom in Korea, one of the Three Kingdoms, existing from 37 BCE to 668 CE and covering much of North Korea, northern South Korea, and parts of Manchuria.

GoH

noun

A person invited to a convention or event as an honoured guest, often to give a talk because of their achievements in the field.

Goin

name

A surname.

going

noun

The act of leaving; a departure.

Gol

name

A municipality and village in Buskerud, Norway.

Golan

name

A region in the Middle East on the border of Syria and Israel, commonly called the Golan Heights; also a Hebrew habitational surname.

gold

noun

A soft, heavy, yellow precious metal used in jewellery, coins, and electronics.

Golda

name

A feminine given name of Yiddish origin, meaning "gold."

Goldberg

name

A German surname common in the United States, also the name of a town in Germany.

golden

adj

Made of gold, or coloured like it.

Goldfarb

name

A surname of German Jewish origin.

Goldfish

noun

A small, hardy orange fish, often kept as a pet in bowls or ponds.

Goldie

noun

Something with a golden color, especially a golden-colored animal such as a goldfish, goldfinch, or golden retriever.

goldilocks

noun

Someone, especially a girl, with long golden hair.

Golding

noun

A variety of hop plant (or its cone) traditionally grown in Kent, England, prized for brewing pale ales.

Goldman

name

A surname of German Jewish origin.

goldsmith

noun

A craftsperson who makes or repairs jewellery and other items out of gold.

Goldstein

name

A German Jewish surname, also the name of a district of Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

golem

noun

In Jewish folklore, a humanlike figure made from clay or mud and brought to life by magic, often to serve or protect its creator.

golf

noun

A sport in which players use clubs to hit a small ball into a series of holes on a course, aiming for the fewest strokes.

golfer

noun

A person who plays golf.

golfing

noun

The activity or a session of playing golf.

goli

noun

A traditional masked dance performed by the Baoulé people of Ivory Coast.

Goliath

name

In the Bible, a giant warrior defeated in single combat by the young David.

Gollum

noun

Someone who acts obsessive, secretive, and twisted the way Tolkien's Gollum character does, especially over a prized possession.

golly

intj

A mild, old-fashioned exclamation of surprise or delight.

gomer

noun

A clumsy, foolish, or hopelessly inept person, especially a trainee or new recruit.

Gomez

name

A common Spanish surname.

Gomorrah

name

A biblical city said to have been destroyed by God alongside Sodom as punishment for its inhabitants' wickedness.

gon

noun

A unit of angle measurement equal to one hundredth of a right angle, also called a gradian.

gondola

noun

A long, narrow boat with a raised prow, traditionally rowed with a single oar, famously used on the canals of Venice.

gone

adj

No longer present; having left or departed.

goner

noun

Someone or something considered beyond saving — doomed to fail, break, or die.

gong

noun

A large metal disc that produces a deep, resonant sound when struck with a mallet.

gonna

verb

Informal contraction of "going to," used to describe something planned for the near future.

gonorrhea

noun

A sexually transmitted bacterial infection that affects the genital and urinary tract.

Gonzales

name

A Spanish surname, and the name of cities in California, Louisiana, and Texas.

Gonzalez

name

A common Spanish surname.

Gonzalo

name

A masculine given name and surname of Spanish origin.

gonzo

adj

Describing a highly subjective, exaggerated style of journalism where the reporter becomes part of the story.

goo

noun

A sticky, gummy, or slimy semi-liquid substance of unclear or unpleasant composition.

goober

noun

US informal term for a peanut.

gooch

noun

Crude slang for the perineum.

good

adj

Acting in a way that is kind, moral, or beneficial.

goodbye

intj

A word used to say farewell when someone is leaving.

Goode

name

A surname, a variant of Good.

Goodfellow

name

A surname.

Goodie

noun

A member of UK television comedy trio The Goodies.

goodly

adj

Considerably large or sufficient in amount.

goodman

noun

An old-fashioned, polite term of address for a man, or a term for the male head of a household.

goodness

noun

The quality or state of being good, morally or otherwise.

goodnight

noun

A farewell said at night, before parting or going to sleep.

Goodson

name

A surname.

goodwill

noun

A friendly, favorable attitude toward someone or something.

Goodwin

name

An old English given name, formed from words meaning "good" and "friend," now more common as a surname.

goody

intj

An expression of delight or pleasure, often used playfully or by children.

gooey

adj

Soft, sticky, and viscous.

goof

noun

A mistake or blunder.

goofball

noun

A silly, playful, or foolish person.

goofing

noun

The act of fooling around or making mistakes, especially playfully.

goofy

adj

Silly, quirky, or good-naturedly ridiculous.

google

verb

To search for information about something online, especially using the Google search engine.

googly

noun

In cricket, a deceptive delivery bowled by a leg-spin bowler that spins the opposite way to what the batsman expects.

gook

noun

An offensive, derogatory slur for people of East or Southeast Asian descent, especially originating in US military use during 20th-century conflicts in Asia.

goomer

noun

Someone who plays video games obsessively, to the point that it dominates their life or social image.

goon

noun

A thug or hired muscle, especially one who intimidates or fights on someone else's orders.

goop

noun

Any thick, sticky, messy substance.

goose

noun

A large web-footed waterfowl, related to but bigger than a duck, often kept as farm poultry or hunted as game.

gooseberry

noun

A small, tart, round green (or sometimes red) berry that grows on a spiny shrub, used in pies, jams, and fools.

Gopal

name

A masculine given name and surname of Sanskrit origin, meaning "cowherd," used especially as a name of the god Krishna.

Gopala

name

An epithet of the Hindu god Krishna, also used as a masculine given name in India, often anglicised as Gopal.

gopher

noun

A small burrowing rodent native to North America, known for digging extensive tunnel systems.

gopi

noun

In Hindu mythology, one of the cowherd women of Vrindavan who were devoted companions of the god Krishna.

gor

intj

(British dialect) A mild exclamation of surprise, a softened way of saying "God."

gora

noun

(South Asian, informal) A white or fair-skinned person, especially a European.

Goran

name

A masculine given name common in South Slavic languages.

Gorbachev

name

A Russian surname, most notably borne by Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union.

gord

noun

A fortified settlement built by early Slavic peoples, typically a cluster of wooden houses ringed by an earth-and-wood wall.

Gordie

name

A diminutive of the masculine given name Gordon.

Gordo

name

A diminutive of the masculine given name Gordon.

Gordon

name

A Scottish habitational surname from the Celtic languages for someone from Gordon, Berwickshire.

Gordy

name

A diminutive of the masculine given name Gordon.

gore

noun

Blood, especially clotted or thickened blood from a wound, or graphic depictions of violence.

gored

adj

Wounded by being pierced with a horn or tusk.

Goren

name

A surname.

gorge

noun

A deep, narrow valley or ravine, usually with steep rocky walls and often a river running through it.

gorgeous

adj

Extremely beautiful, dazzling, or richly attractive.

gorgon

noun

In Greek mythology, one of three monstrous sisters with snakes for hair, whose gaze turned people to stone.

gorgonzola

noun

A strong, blue-veined Italian cheese made from cow's milk.

gorilla

noun

The largest living primate, a powerful ape native to the forests of Central Africa.

goring

noun

A wound caused by being pierced with a horn, especially in bullfighting.

gorky

adj

(slang) Awkward, strange, or clumsy.

Gorman

name

An Irish surname, also used as a place name in several U.S. states.

Gormley

name

An Irish surname, also the name of a small community in West Virginia.

Gorski

name

A Polish surname.

gory

adj

Covered in blood, or full of graphic bloody violence.

Goryeo

noun

A Korean dynasty and kingdom (918-1392 CE) whose name is the origin of the modern English word "Korea."

gosh

intj

A mild exclamation of surprise, delight, or emphasis, used as a polite substitute for "God."

gosling

noun

A young goose.

gospel

noun

Any of the four New Testament books (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) recounting the life and teachings of Jesus.

goss

noun

(informal, British/Australian) Gossip.

gossamer

noun

A fine, filmy strand of cobweb often seen drifting in the air or caught on bushes.