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piece of goods. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
piece of goods, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
piece of goods in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
piece of goods you have here. The definition of the word
piece of goods will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
piece of goods, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Noun
piece of goods (plural pieces of goods)
- (slang, obsolete) A person, especially one with undesirable flaws or other notable characteristics.
- Hyponym: piece of work
1871, Mary Elizabeth Braddon, Fenton's Quest:'Well, upon my word,' exclaimed the father, taking the pipe from his mouth, and staring aghast at his daughter in a stupor of indignant surprise, 'you're a pretty article; you're a nice piece of goods for a man to bring up and waste his substance upon […]
- Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see piece, of, goods.
1889, N.Y. Supreme Court General Term, page 34:Usually a silk salesman, a man is accustomed to take his piece of goods and handle them, and roll them out and show them to his customers, […]
References
- John Camden Hotten (1873) “Gentlemen of the counter-jumping fraternity describe their 'young ladies' as 'nice pieces of goods.'”, in The Slang Dictionary