goof
/ɡuːf/noun, verb
goof is spelled G-O-O-F: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,270th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, goof means “A mistake or error” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of goof is goofs.
How many letters and syllables are in goof?
| Letters | 4: G-O-O-F |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 29,270th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is goof?
Goof appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,270th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce goof?
- /ɡuːf/
Goof has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-goof.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of goof
- goofs plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- goofing participle, present
- goofed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does goof mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
USinformalA mistake or error.
I made a goof in that last calculation.
- 2
USinformalAn error made during production which finds its way into the final release.
- 3
CanadaUSinformalA foolish and/or silly person; a goofball.
Your little brother is a total goof.
- 4
CanadaslangA rapist.
verb
- 1
USTo make a mistake.
It's my fault. I goofed.
- 2
USTo engage in mischief.
We were just goofing by painting the neighbor's cat green.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Goof in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does goof come from?
Perhaps from dialectal English goff (“foolish clown”), from earlier goffe, in which case further etymology is uncertain. Perhaps from Middle English goffen (“to speak in a frivolous manner”), possibly from Old English gaf, ġegaf (“base; wanton; lewd”, adjective), ġegaf (“buffoonery; scurrility”, noun), gaffetung, golfettung (“buffoonery; mockery”). Compare English dialectal gauffin (“lightheaded; foolish; giddy”), Scots gaff, gawf (“to talk loudly; babble”), Scots gaffaw (“a loud laugh”). Alternatively, perhaps from Middle French goffe (“awkward; stupid”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).