1
: a social or diplomatic blunder
committed an embarrassing gaffe when he mispronounced her name
2
: a noticeable mistake
Kwan did not fall today, as she had in Friday's short program, a gaffe that left her in fourth place.—
Christopher Clarey
Christopher ClareyExamples of gaffe in a Sentence
He realized that he had committed an awful gaffe when he mispronounced her name.
committed a huge gaffe when she started drinking from the finger bowl
Recent Examples on the Web
Just be normal: Experts shared tips on avoiding gaffes in video calls and internal messages.
—Natasha Frost, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2025
The jaw-dropping gaffe – which was met with stunned disbelief by those in the room and at home – was the result of a mix-up by accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, who mistakenly handed presenters Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty the wrong category envelope.
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 16 Feb. 2025
However, the drive stalled on the next set of downs after Allen fumbled, recovering his own gaffe.
—Kevin Dotson, CNN, 26 Jan. 2025
Brown had a wonderful sense of self-deprecating humor and laughed about his gaffe for years.
—George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gaffe
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Natasha Frost, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2025
The jaw-dropping gaffe – which was met with stunned disbelief by those in the room and at home – was the result of a mix-up by accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, who mistakenly handed presenters Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty the wrong category envelope.
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 16 Feb. 2025
However, the drive stalled on the next set of downs after Allen fumbled, recovering his own gaffe.
—Kevin Dotson, CNN, 26 Jan. 2025
Brown had a wonderful sense of self-deprecating humor and laughed about his gaffe for years.
—George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gaffe
Cite this Entry
“Gaffe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gaffe. Accessed 23 Mar. 2025.
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gaffe
noun
: a noticeable mistake especially of manners
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