goodfella

noun

"goodfella" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“goodfella” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A gangster, especially one in the Mafia.

Corpus desk

Index EN-goodfella · goodfella · English

goodfella · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "G" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for goodfella
PropertyValue
Headwordgoodfella
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “goodfella” in English

goodfellasits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

goodfella is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A gangster, especially one in the Mafia.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for goodfella, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From good + fella. Popularized by the American crime film Goodfellas (1990). The correct English form is goodfella, spelled G-O-O-D-F-E-L-L-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A gangster, especially one in the Mafia.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how goodfella appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Was Anthony Mirra a wiseguy then? […] If Mirra wasn't a good fellow at the time you was there, his argument is no good.
  2. […] according to law enforcement, the boss of the largest crime family in the country, some 300 wise guys, good fellows, good guys, button men, made guys—sworn members of the family—and 1,000 and 1,500 associated members.

Etymology

From good + fella. Popularized by the American crime film Goodfellas (1990).

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "goodfella"?
"goodfella" is spelled G-O-O-D-F-E-L-L-A.
What does "goodfella" mean?
As a noun, "goodfella" means: A gangster, especially one in the Mafia.
What is the origin of the word "goodfella"?
From good + fella. Popularized by the American crime film Goodfellas (1990). See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list