good

1 of 3

adjective

ˈgu̇d

better ˈbe-tər

; best ˈbest

Synonyms of good next

a(1)

: of a favorable character or tendency

good news

(2)

: bountiful, fertile

good land

(3)

: handsome, attractive

good looks

b(1)

: suitable, fit

good to eat

(2)

: free from injury or disease

one good arm

(3)

: not depreciated

bad money drives out good

(4)

: commercially sound

a good risk

(5)

: that can be relied on

good for another year

good for a hundred dollars

always good for a laugh

(6)

: profitable, advantageous

made a very good deal

c(1)

: agreeable, pleasant

had a good time

(2)

: salutary, wholesome

good for a cold

(3)

: amusing, clever

a good joke

d(1)

: of a noticeably large size or quantity : considerable

won by a good margin

a good bit of the time

(2)

: full

waited a good hour

(3)

—used as a word that gives force or emphasis to a statement

a good many of us

e(1)

: well-founded, cogent

good reasons

(2)

: true

holds good for society at large

(3)

: deserving of respect : honorable

in good standing

(4)

: legally valid or effectual

good title

f(1)

: adequate, satisfactory

good care

—often used in faint praise

his serve is only good—

Frank Deford

(2)

: conforming to a standard

good English

(3)

: liking only things that are of good quality : choice, discriminating

good taste

(4)

: containing less fat and being less tender than higher grades

—used of meat and especially of beef

g sports

(1)

of a serve or shot : landing in the proper area of the court in tennis and similar games

The serve was good.

(2)

of a shot or kick : successfully done

(basketball) The first foul shot was good but she missed the second one.

(American football) The kick was good from 45 yards.

The kick was no good. [=was missed]

informal : having everything desired or required : content and not wanting or needing to do anything further

"Do you want anything else to drink?" "No thanks, I'm good."

"I have had girlfriends say, 'Hey, you wanna go walking?' And I'm just not interested. I'm like 'Uh, no, I'm good.' But they keep inviting me!"—

Laila Ali

a(1)

: virtuous, right, commendable

a good person

good conduct

(2)

: kind, benevolent

good intentions

: upper-class

a good family

: competent, skillful

a good doctor

d(1)

: loyal

a good party man

a good Catholic

(2)

: close

a good friend

: free from infirmity or sorrow

I feel good

goodish

ˈgu̇-dish

adjective

Good vs. Well: Usage Guide

An old notion that it is wrong to say "I feel good" in reference to health still occasionally appears in print. The origins of this notion are obscure, but they seem to combine someone's idea that good should be reserved to describe virtue and uncertainty about whether an adverb or an adjective should follow feel. Today nearly everyone agrees that both good and well can be predicate adjectives after feel. Both are used to express good health, but good may connote good spirits in addition to good health.

good

2 of 3

noun

: something that is good

b(1)

: something conforming to the moral order of the universe

(2)

: praiseworthy character : goodness

: a good element or portion

: advancement of prosperity or well-being

the good of the community

it's for your own good

: something useful or beneficial

it's no good trying

: something that has economic utility or satisfies an economic want

goods ˈgu̇dz

plural : personal property having intrinsic value but usually excluding money, securities, and negotiable instruments

goods plural : cloth

goods plural : something manufactured or produced for sale : wares, merchandise

canned goods

goods plural, British : freight

: good persons

—used with the

goods plural

: the qualities required to achieve an end

: proof of wrongdoing

didn't have the goods on him—

T. G. Cooke

good

3 of 3

adverb

: well

he showed me how good I was doing—

Herbert Gold

—used as an intensive

a good long time

Good vs. Well: Usage Guide

Adverbial good has been under attack from the schoolroom since the 19th century. Insistence on well rather than good has resulted in a split in connotation: well is standard, neutral, and colorless, while good is emotionally charged and emphatic. This makes good the adverb of choice in sports.

"I'm seeing the ball real good" is what you hear —

Roger Angell

In such contexts as

listen up. And listen good —

Alex Karras

lets fly with his tomatoes before they can flee. He gets Clarence good —

Charles Dickinson

good cannot be adequately replaced by well. Adverbial good is primarily a spoken form; in writing it occurs in reported and fictional speech and in generally familiar or informal contexts.

Phrases

as good as

: in effect : virtually

as good as dead

as good as gold

: of the highest worth or reliability

his promise is as good as gold

: well-behaved

the child was as good as gold

good and \ ˌgu̇d-ᵊn

: very, entirely

was good and mad

for good or less commonly for good and all

: forever, permanently

She's gone for good.

in good with

: in a favored position with

to the good

: for the best : beneficial

efforts to restrict credit were all to the good—

Time

: in a position of net gain or profit

wound up $10 to the good

Examples of good in a Sentence

Adjective You'll need better tools for this job. The car is in good condition. There are some good restaurants in this neighborhood. I'm afraid your work is just not good enough. Keep up the good work. “Would you hire her again?” “Yes, I would. She does good work.” The food was good but not great. He has done good but not outstanding work. Did you have a good time at the party? We're expecting good weather for the weekend. Noun the battle of good versus evil Teachers can be a strong force for good. the difference between good and bad They had to sacrifice lesser goods for greater ones. What is life's highest good? Parents must teach their children the difference between the good and the bad. She believes that the good go to heaven when they die and the bad go to hell. Only the good die young. She believes there is some good in everyone. Adverb Things have been going good lately. The team is doing good this year. “How did you hit the ball today?” “Good.” The other team whipped us good.

Recent Examples on the Web

These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Adjective

They are gone, presumably for good, a full 21 months before the end of Lo’s two-year lease. —

Suzanne Seggerman, Curbed, 14 Nov. 2024 Small Pockets of Cover Similarly, other small pockets of cover can be good, too. —

Josh Honeycutt, Outdoor Life, 14 Nov. 2024

Noun

Trump is promising something much, much more aggressive, setting tariff levels that haven’t been seen in nearly a century: 10 to 20 percent on most foreign products, and 60 percent or more on goods made in China. —

New York Times, 3 Nov. 2024 Creating a greater awareness about sustainable cocoa practices has the ability to transcend a marketplace outcome beyond being centered mostly on the availability of chocolate goods for consumers. —

Noël Fletcher, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024

Adverb

Ours is set in a modern world while subverting the audiences expectations given the character has personified good since its inception. —

Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 10 May 2024 Ethics and dangers are obvious concerns, but it shouldn’t be overlooked that AI has the potential to do profound good beyond pithy conversation with some chatbot. —

Steven Aquino, Forbes, 13 Nov. 2023 See all Example Sentences for good

Word History

Etymology

Adjective, Noun, and Adverb

Middle English, from Old English gōd; akin to Old High German guot good, Middle High German gatern to unite, Sanskrit gadhya what one clings to

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adverb

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler

The first known use of good was before the 12th century

See more words from the same century

Phrases Containing good

Articles Related to good

Gucci

Fancy, very fashionable; great, excellent

Can you 'feel good'?

We certainly hope so.

Adjectives that Look Like Nouns

There is a ruthless efficiency in the editing of dictionaries

Cite this Entry

Style

“Good.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/good. Accessed 17 Nov. 2024.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

good

1 of 3 adjective

ˈgu̇d

better ˈbet-ər

; best ˈbest

: of a favorable character or tendency

good news

: fertile sense 1

good land

: handsome sense 3, attractive

good looks

: agreeable sense 1, pleasant

a good place to live

: suitable sense 1, fit

good to eat

a remedy good for a cold

: reliable

a good friend in a pinch

: sound entry 1 sense 1a

one good arm

: certain to last or live

good for another year

: certain to provide or produce

always good for a laugh

: of a noticeably large size or quantity

present in good numbers

: full entry 1 sense 2a

waited a good hour

: based on sound reasoning, information, judgment, or grounds

good reasons

: true entry 1 sense 2

holds good for society as a whole

: deserving of respect or honor

a member in good standing

: legally valid

has a good title

: adequate sense 1, satisfactory

good care

: conforming to a standard

good English

: showing or favoring high quality

good taste

: virtuous, just

a good person

: right entry 1 sense 2

good conduct

: kind entry 2 sense 1, benevolent

good intentions

: being of the upper class

of good family

: skillful sense 1

a good doctor

: loyal sense 2

a good party member

goodness noun

good

2 of 3 noun

: something good, useful, or desirable

health and prosperity are goods

: benefit entry 1 sense 1a, welfare

the good of the community

plural : cloth sense 1

plural : manufactured articles or products of art or craft

: good persons

—used with the

plural : proof of wrongdoing

got the goods on them

good

3 of 3 adverb

: well entry 3 sense 1

Legal Definition

good

1 of 2 adjective

better; best

: commercially sound or reliable

a good risk

: valid or effectual under the law

: free of defects

: characterized by honesty and fairness

: conforming to a standard of virtue

shall hold their offices during good behavior—

U.S. Constitution art. III

also : characterized by or relating to good behavior

good

2 of 2 noun

: advancement of prosperity and well-being

for the good of the community

: an item of tangible movable personal property having value but usually excluding money, securities, and negotiable instruments

—usually used in pl. : as

plural : all things under section 2-103 of the Uniform Commercial Code that are movable at the time of identification to the contract for sale other than information, the money that is to be paid, investment securities, the subject matter of foreign exchange transactions, and choses in action

plural : all things under section 9-102 of the Uniform Commercial Code that are movable at the time that a security interest in them attaches or that are fixtures but excluding money, documents, instruments, accounts, chattel paper, general intangibles, commercial tort claims, deposit accounts, investment property, letter-of-credit rights, letters of credit, and minerals or the like before extraction

— consumer goods

: goods purchased primarily for personal, family, or household uses

— durable goods

: consumer goods that last and are used for a number of years : durables

— fungible goods

: goods of which any unit is by nature or by usage of trade the equivalent of any other like unit especially as defined by section 1-201 of the Uniform Commercial Code

— future goods

: goods that are the subject of a contract but are not yet existing or specified

— hard goods

: durable goods in this entry

— household goods

: goods used in connection with the home

specifically : furniture, furnishings, and personal effects used in a dwelling as defined by section 7-209 of the Uniform Commercial Code

— mobile goods

: goods as formerly defined in section 9-103 of the Uniform Commercial Code that are mobile, are of a type (as vehicles) usually used in more than one jurisdiction, are not covered by a certificate of title, and are either the equipment of a debtor or inventory leased by a debtor

— ordinary goods

: goods as formerly defined by section 9-103 of the Uniform Commercial Code that are anything other than those covered by a certificate of title, mobile goods, or minerals

— producer goods

: goods (as tools and raw materials) used to produce other goods and satisfy human wants only indirectly

— soft goods

: consumer goods that are not durable goods

Last Updated: 17 Nov 2024 - Updated example sentences

Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Word of the Day

grandiloquence

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!

good

adjective

noun

adverb

Synonyms

Examples of good in a Sentence

Word History

Dictionary Entries Near good

Cite this Entry

Kids Definition

Legal Definition