Good

Pronunciation

• enPR: go͝od, IPA: /É¡ÊŠd/
• Rhymes: -ÊŠd

From Middle English good, from Old English gōd ("good, virtuous, desirable, favorable, salutary, pleasant, valid, efficient, suitable, considerable, sufficiently great"), from Proto-Germanic *gōdaz ("good"), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰedʰ- ("to unite, be associated, suit"). Cognate with Scots guid ("good"), West Frisian goed ("good"), Dutch goed ("good"), Low German god ("good"), German gut ("good"), Danish and Swedish god ("good"), Icelandic góður ("good"), Lithuanian guõdas ("honor"), Albanian dial. hut ("good, fit, appropriate"), Old Church Slavonic годъ (godŭ, "pleasing time") and годенъ (godenŭ, "fitting, suitable"), Sanskrit गद्य (gádhya, "fitting, suitable"). Related to gather.

Alternative forms

• g'd poetic contraction

Full definition of good

Adjective

1. (of people)
1. Acting in the interest of good; ethical.
   good intentions
• 1891, Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Ch. 6When we are happy, we are always good, but when we are good, we are not always happy.
2. Competent or talented.
   a good swimmer
• Robert South (1634–1716)Those are generally good at flattering who are good for nothing else.
• 1922, Michael Arlen, “Piracy”: A Romantic Chronicle of These Days Chapter 3/19/2, 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.
3. Able to be depended on for the discharge of obligations incurred; of unimpaired credit.
   Can you lend me fifty dollars? You know I'm good for it.
4. (of capabilities)
1. Useful for a particular purpose; functional.
   it’s a good watch;  the flashlight batteries are still good
• 2013, David Van Tassel, Lee DeHaan, Wild Plants to the Rescue, 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
3. (of properties and qualities)
1. (of food)
1. Edible; not stale or rotten.
   The bread is still good.
2. Having a particularly pleasant taste.
   The food was very good.
3. Being satisfying; meeting dietary requirements.
   Eat a good dinner so you will be ready for the big game tomorrow.
2. Healthful.
   carrots are good for you;  walking is good for you
3. Pleasant; enjoyable.
   the music, dancing, and food were very good;  we had a good time
4. Favourable.
   a good omen;   good weather
5. Beneficial; worthwhile.
   a good job
• 1918, W. B. Maxwell, The Mirror and the Lamp Chapter 22, 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.
6. Adequate; sufficient; not fallacious.
• William Shakespeare (1564-1616)My reasons are both good and weighty.
4. (colloquial) With "and", extremely.
   The soup is good and hot.
5. (especially when capitalized) Holy.
   Good Friday
6. (of quantities)
1. Reasonable in amount.
   all in good time
2. Large in amount or size.
   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.
   a good while longer;  a good amount of seeds
3. Entire.
   This hill will take a good hour and a half to climb.
   The car was a good ten miles away.
• 1893, Walter Besant, The Ivory Gate Chapter Prologue, 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.

Synonyms

• (having positive attributes) not bad, all right, satisfactory, decent
• (healthful) well
• (competent or talented) accomplished

Antonyms

• (having positive attributes) bad, poor
• (ethical) bad, evil

Derived terms

Interjection

1. That is good: an elliptical exclamation of satisfaction or commendation.Good! I can leave now.

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 godt ("good, well", adverb.), all from the adjective.

Adverb

1. (nonstandard) Well; satisfactorily or thoroughly.
• 1906, Zane Grey, The Spirit of the Border: A Romance of the Early Settlers in the Ohio ValleyIf 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.
• 2007 April 19, Jimmy Wales, “Jimmy Wales on the User-Generated Generation”, , WHYY, Pennsylvania http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9683874The 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.

Derived terms

• but good

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").

Noun

1. (uncountable) The forces or behaviors that are the enemy of evil. Usually consists of helping others and general benevolence.
• 1918, W. B. Maxwell, The Mirror and the Lamp Chapter 13, 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.
3. (uncountable) The abstract instantiation of goodness; that which possesses desirable qualities, promotes success, welfare, or happiness, is serviceable, fit, excellent, kind, benevolent, etc.
• Bible, Psalms iv. 6There be many that say, Who will show us any good?
• JayThe good of the whole community can be promoted only by advancing the good of each of the members composing it.
4. The best is the enemy of the good.
5. (countable, usually in plural) An item of merchandise.
• William ShakespeareThy lands and goods
  Are, by the laws of Venice, confiscate
  Unto the state of Venice.

Antonyms

• (forces of good) bad, evil
• (positive result) bad

Derived terms

• (item of merchandise) capital goods, consumer goods

From Middle English goden, godien, from Old English gōdian ("to improve, get better; make better; endow, enrich"), from Proto-Germanic *gōdōną ("to make better, improve"), from Proto-Germanic *gōdaz ("good, favourable").

Verb

1. (intransitive, now chiefly dialectal) To thrive; fatten; prosper; improve.
2. (transitive, now chiefly dialectal) To make good; turn to good; improve.
3. (intransitive, now chiefly dialectal) To make improvements or repairs.
4. (intransitive, now chiefly dialectal) To benefit; gain.
5. (transitive, now chiefly dialectal) To do good to (someone); benefit; cause to improve or gain.
6. (transitive, now chiefly dialectal) To satisfy; indulge; gratify.
7. (reflexive, now chiefly dialectal) To flatter; congratulate oneself; anticipate.

Derived terms

• gooding

From English dialectal, from Middle English *goden, of origin, related to Swedish göda ("to fatten, fertilise, battle"), Danish gøde ("to fertilise, battle"), ultimately from the adjective. See above.

Verb

1. (transitive, now chiefly dialectal, Scotland) To furnish with dung; manure; fatten with manure; fertilise.

Derived terms

• goodening