GAFFE
What does "GAFFE" mean?
An embarrassing social blunder or tactless mistake.
Meanings
- A clumsy social or diplomatic mistake; a tactless remark or act. Calling the host by the wrong name was an awkward gaffe.
Did you know?
- Before it meant a verbal blunder, 'gaffe' was a French boat-hook - a long hooked pole - and the social sense grew from the image of grabbing clumsily at the wrong thing.
Word origin
Borrowed in the early 20th century from French 'gaffe' (blunder), originally a boat-hook; the figurative 'blunder' sense may come from the slang phrase 'faire une gaffe', to make a clumsy move.
Remember it
GAFFE has the double-F of a stifled 'pfff' - the sound of the room reacting to your blunder.
A little poem
The wrong name leaves your mouth and hangs midair-
you'd reel it back, but everyone's still there.
couplet
Wordplay
- I made a gaffe at the boat club and tried to fix it. Turns out you can't unhook some things you've said.
What it teaches
Most gaffes survive not the mistake but the silence we let follow it.
Quick facts
What does GAFFE mean?
An embarrassing social blunder or tactless mistake.
Is GAFFE a valid word?
Yes — GAFFE is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is GAFFE?
GAFFE has 5 letters and 1 syllable.
Where does GAFFE come from?
Borrowed in the early 20th century from French 'gaffe' (blunder), originally a boat-hook; the figurative 'blunder' sense may come from the slang phrase 'faire une gaffe', to make a clumsy move.
What can GAFFE teach us?
Most gaffes survive not the mistake but the silence we let follow it.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.