good

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good

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• enPR: go͝od:
  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ɡʊd/

    • Audio (Received Pronunciation):

      (file)

  • (General American, New Zealand) IPA^(key): /ɡʊd/, ,

    • Audio (General American):

      (file)

  • (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ɡʊd/, ,
  • (Scotland, Northern Ireland) IPA^(key): /ɡʉd/
• (African-American Vernacular) enPR: go͝o(d), IPA^(key): /ɡʊ(d)/
• Rhymes: -ʊd

Inherited from Middle English good, from Old English gōd, from Proto-West Germanic *gōd, from Proto-Germanic *gōdaz, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰedʰ- (“to unite, be associated, suit”).

Cognate with Russian го́дный (gódnyj, “fit, well-suited, good for; (coll.) good”), год (god), "year", via "suitable time".

Related to gather and together, but not to god/God.

Eclipsed non-native Middle English bon, bone, boon, boun (“good”) borrowed from Old French bon (“good”), from Latin bonus (“good”).

• goode (obsolete)

good (comparative better or (nonstandard, humorous) gooder, superlative best or (nonstandard, humorous) goodest)

1. (of people or animals)
   1. Acting in the interest of what is beneficial, ethical, or moral.

      good intentions

      • c. 1525, The Example of Euyll Tongues, page a3 rectoː

        Yf ony man wolde begynne his synnes to reny / Or ony good people that fro vyce dyde refrayne / What so euer he were that to vertue wolde applye / But an yll tonge wyll all ouer throwe agayne

        If any man would begin to renounce his sins, / Or any good people who refrained from vice, / Whatsoever he who wished to apply himself to virtue might be, / Still an ill tongue would overthrow it all again.

      • 1891, Oscar Wilde, chapter 6, in The Picture of Dorian Gray, London, New York, N.Y., Melbourne, Vic.: Ward Lock & Co., →OCLC:

        When we are happy, we are always good, but when we are good, we are not always happy.

   2. Competent or talented.

      a good swimmer

      • 1704, Robert South, Twelve Sermons Preached on Several Occasions, On the nature and measure of conscience:

        Flatter him it may, I confess, (as those are generally good at flattering who are good for nothing else,) but in the meantime the poor man is left under the fatal necessity of a needless delusion

      • 1922, Michael Arlen, “3/19/2”, in “Piracy”: A Romantic Chronicle of These Days:

        Ivor had acquired more than a mile of fishing rights with the house ; he was not at all a good fisherman, but one must do something ; one generally, however, banged a ball with a squash-racket against a wall.

      • 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)

        And Marsha says I am a good cook!

        Audio (US):

        (file)

   3. Able to be depended on for the discharge of obligations incurred; of unimpaired credit; used with for.

      Can you lend me fifty dollars? You know I'm good for it.

   4. Well-behaved (especially of children or animals).

      Be good while your mother and I are out.

      Were you a good boy for the babysitter?

   5. (US) Satisfied or at ease; not requiring more.

      Would you like a glass of water? — I'm good.

      you good? — Yeah, I'm fine.

      Gimme another beer! — I think you're good.

   6. (colloquial, with with) Accepting of, OK with

      My mother said she's good with me being alone with my date as long as she's met them first.

      The soup is rather spicy. Are you good with that, or would you like something else?

   7. (archaic) Of high rank or birth.
      • 1595 December 9 (first known performance), William Shakespeare, “The life and death of King Richard the Second”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, , page 23, columns 1–2:

        Thou art a Traitor, and a Miſcreant;
        Too good to be ſo, and too bad to liue,
        Since the more faire and chriſtall is the skie,
        The vglier ſeeme the cloudes that in it flye:

2. (of capabilities)
   1. Useful for a particular purpose; functional.

      it’s a good watch;  the flashlight batteries are still good

      • 1526, Herballː

        Against cough and scarceness of breath caused of cold take the drink that it hath been sodden in with Liquorice or that the powder hath been sodden in with dry figs for the same the electuary called dyacalamentum is good and it is made thus.

      • 2013 May-June, David Van Tassel, Lee DeHaan, “Wild Plants to the Rescue”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3:

        Plant breeding is always a numbers game. […] The wild species we use are rich in genetic variation, […]. In addition, we are looking for rare alleles, so the more plants we try, the better. These rarities may be new mutations, or they can be existing ones that are neutral—or are even selected against—in a wild population. A good example is mutations that disrupt seed dispersal, leaving the seeds on the heads long after they are ripe.

   2. Effective.

      a good worker

      • 1913, Mrs. Belloc Lowndes, chapter II, in The Lodger, London: Methuen, →OCLC; republished in Novels of Mystery: The Lodger; The Story of Ivy; What Really Happened, New York, N.Y.: Longmans, Green and Co., , , →OCLC, page 0091:

        There was a neat hat-and-umbrella stand, and the stranger's weary feet fell soft on a good, serviceable dark-red drugget, which matched in colour the flock-paper on the walls.

   3. (obsolete) Real; actual; serious.

      in good sooth

      • c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

        Love no man in good earnest.

3. (properties and qualities)
   1. (of food)
      1. Having a particularly pleasant taste.

         The food was very good.

      2. Being satisfying; meeting dietary requirements.

         Eat a good dinner so you will be ready for the big game tomorrow.

   2. Of food or other perishable products, still fit for use; not yet expired, stale, rotten, etc.

      The bread is still good.

   3. Valid, of worth, capable of being honoured.

      This coupon is good for a free doughnut.

   4. True, valid, of explanatory strength.

      This theory still holds good even if much higher temperatures are assumed.

      • 1966, K. Rothfels, Margaret Freeman, “The salivary gland chromosomes of three North American species of Twinnia (Diptera: Simuliidae)”, in Canadian Journal of Zoology, volume 44, number 5, →DOI:

        Twinnia biclavata differs from T. nova by inversion IS-1 and a nucleolar shift. Both are good species.

   5. Right, proper, as it should be.
      • 15th c., “”, in Wakefield Mystery Plays; Re-edited in George England, Alfred W. Pollard, editors, The Towneley Plays (Early English Text Society Extra Series; LXXI), London: Oxford University Press, 1897, →OCLC, page 6, lines 184–185:

        It is not good to be alone, / to walk here in this worthely wone, / In all this welthly wyn;

        It is not good to be alone / to walk here in this noble dwelling-place / in all this rich delight.

      • 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, , →OCLC, Canto XXIV, page 41:

        If all was good and fair we met,
        ⁠This earth had been the Paradise
        ⁠It never look’d to human eyes
        Since Adam left his garden yet.

   6. Healthful.

      Exercise and a varied diet are good for you.

   7. Pleasant; enjoyable.

      We had a good time.

   8. Favorable.

      a good omen;  good weather

      • 1918, W B Maxwell, chapter XXII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:

        Not unnaturally, “Auntie” took this communication in bad part. […] Next day she […] tried to recover her ward by the hair of the head. Then, thwarted, the wretched creature went to the police for help; she was versed in the law, and had perhaps spared no pains to keep on good terms with the local constabulary.

   9. Unblemished; honourable.

      a person's good name

   10. Beneficial; worthwhile.

       a good job

   11. Adequate; sufficient; not fallacious.
       • c. 1590–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Taming of the Shrew”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

         My reasons are both good and weighty.

4. (colloquial, when with and) Very, extremely. See good and.

   The soup is good and hot.

5. (colloquial) Ready.

   I'm good when you are.

   The reports are good to go.

6. Holy (especially when capitalized) .

   Good Friday, Good Wednesday, the Good Book

7. (of quantities)
   1. Reasonable in amount.

      all in good time

   2. Large in amount or size.

      a good while longer

      a good number of seeds

      A good part of his day was spent shopping.

      It will be a good while longer until he's done.

      He's had a good amount of troubles, he has.

      • 1909, Archibald Marshall [pseudonym; Arthur Hammond Marshall], chapter III, in The Squire’s Daughter, New York, N.Y.: Dodd, Mead and Company, published 1919, →OCLC:

        The big houses, and there are a good many of them, lie for the most part in what may be called by courtesy the valleys. You catch a glimpse of them sometimes at a little distance from the line, which seems to have shown some ingenuity in avoiding them, […].

   3. Full; entire; at least as much as.

      This hill will take a good hour and a half to climb.  The car was a good ten miles away.

      • 1892, Walter Besant, “Prologue: Who is Edmund Gray?”, in The Ivory Gate , New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, , →OCLC, page 16:

        Athelstan Arundel walked home all the way, foaming and raging. No omnibus, cab, or conveyance ever built could contain a young man in such a rage. His mother lived at Pembridge Square, which is four good measured miles from Lincoln's Inn.

• The comparative gooder and superlative goodest are nonstandard. In informal (often jocular) contexts, best may be inflected further and given the comparative bester and the superlative bestest; these forms are also nonstandard.

• (having positive attributes): not bad, all right, satisfactory, decent, see also Thesaurus:good
• (healthful): well
• (competent or talented): accomplished
• (acting in the interest of good; ethical): See Thesaurus:goodness

• (antonym(s) of “having positive attributes”): bad, poor
• (antonym(s) of “ethical”): bad, evil

• Solombala English: гудъ (gud), гутъ (gut)

good

1. That is good; an elliptical exclamation of satisfaction or commendation.

   Good! I can leave now.

Inherited from Middle English goode (“good, well”, adverb), from the adjective. Compare Dutch goed (“good, well”, adverb), German gut (“good, well”, adverb), Danish godt (“good, well”, adverb), Swedish gott (“good, well”, adverb), all from the adjective.

good (comparative better, superlative best)

1. (informal) Well; satisfactorily or thoroughly.

   When you're cleaning these racks, you've got to get in there good, because the quality system specifies it.

   The boy done good. (did well)

   • 1906, Zane Grey, The Spirit of the Border: A Romance of the Early Settlers in the Ohio Valley:

     If Silvertip refuses to give you the horse, grab him before he can draw a weapon, and beat him good. You're big enough to do it.

   • 1970, Troy Conway, The Cunning Linguist, London: Flamingo Books, page 66:

     I kept my eyes peeled for signs of pursuit. There was none, unless I was being fooled very good.

   • 1972, Harry Chapin (lyrics and music), “A Better Place to Be”, in Sniper and Other Love Songs:

     She said, "I don't want to bother you / Consider it's understood / I know I'm not no beauty queen / But I sure can listen good."

   • 1994, Quentin Tarantino, Roger Avary, Pulp Fiction, spoken by Jules (Samuel L. Jackson):

     Marsellus fucked him up good. Word 'round the campfire is it was on account of Marsellus Wallace's wife.

   • 2007 April 19, Jimmy Wales, “Jimmy Wales on the User-Generated Generation”, Fresh Air, WHYY, Pennsylvania

     The one thing that we can't do...is throw out the baby with the bathwater.... We know our process works pretty darn good and, uh, it’s really sparked this amazing phenomenon of this...high-quality website.

   • 2010, Monte Dwyer, Red in the Centre: Through a Crooked Lens, Monyer Pty Ltd, page 14:

     "They're travellin' good now. We'll leave them be."

   • 2012, BioWare, Mass Effect 3 (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Citadel (Priority: Earth):

     Admiral Anderson: You did good, child. You did good. I'm proud of you.

The Germanic cognates (listed at Etymology) illustrate a null morpheme difference from the colexified adjective that is fully standard in those languages, as it would likewise be in modern English too if not for a widespread prescriptive misapprehension. The idea that adverbs in English cannot or should not have a null morpheme difference from the colexified adjective is a widespread notion that bars good (adv) and bad (adv) from formal use even though they are ubiquitous in informal use. It also sometimes drives the misapprehenders to inject -ly hypercorrectively, whereas thusly is usually viewed as prescription run riot, a needless and undesirable replacement of thus.

• but good
• a good many

Inherited from Middle English good, god, from Old English gōd (“a good thing, advantage, benefit, gift; good, goodness, welfare; virtue, ability, doughtiness; goods, property, wealth”), from Proto-Germanic *gōdą (“goods, belongings”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰedʰ-, *gʰodʰ- (“to unite, be associated, suit”). Compare German Gut (“item of merchandise; estate; property”).

good (countable and uncountable, plural goods)

1. (uncountable) The forces or behaviours that are the enemy of evil. Usually consists of helping others and general benevolence.

   Antonyms: bad, evil

   • 1918, W B Maxwell, chapter XIII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:

     And Vickers launched forth into a tirade very different from his platform utterances. He spoke with extreme contempt of the dense stupidity exhibited on all occasions by the working classes. He said that if you wanted to do anything for them, you must rule them, not pamper them. Soft heartedness caused more harm than good.

2. (countable) A result that is positive in the view of the speaker.

   Antonym: bad

3. (uncountable) The abstract instantiation of goodness; that which possesses desirable qualities, promotes success, welfare, or happiness, is serviceable, fit, excellent, kind, benevolent, etc.

   The best is the enemy of the good.

   He is an influence for good on those girls.

   • 1611, The Holy Bible,  (King James Version), London: Robert Barker, , →OCLC, Psalms 4:6:

     There be many that say, Who will show us any good? Lord lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.

   • 1788, John Jay, The Federalist Papers, number 64:

     […] the government must be a weak one indeed, if it should forget that the good of the whole can only be promoted by advancing the good of each of the parts or members which compose the whole.

5. (countable, usually in the plural) An item of merchandise.

   Coordinate term: service

   • c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

     Thy lands and goods / Are, by the laws of Venice, confiscate / Unto the state of Venice.

• (item of merchandise): capital goods, consumer goods