gaffe

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gaffe

/ɡæf/

Sounds like gaff · Rhymes with -æf

Where it comes from

From French gaffe (“blunder”), in turn from Old Occitan gaf (“clasp”). Ultimately derived from Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐍆𐌰𐌷 (gafah, “clasp”, noun) (𐌲𐌰- (ga-, intensifier) + 𐍆𐌰𐌷𐌰𐌽 (fahan, “to catch”)). Doublet of gaff.

noun gaffes · gaff

A foolish and embarrassing error, especially one made in public; a social blunder; a breach of etiquette. make a gaffe
Similar: blooper, blunder, mistake, error, slip, slip-up, aberration, bloomer, boner, boo-boo, break, clanger

Translations

Every language

noun a foolish error, especially one made in public

Español	metida de pata, metedura de pata, desliz, pifia, cagada, gazapo
日本語	失態 shittai
中文	失態 /失态 shītài, 出醜 /出丑 chūchǒu
Português	gafe
Français	gaffe, faux pas, bévue
Deutsch	Fauxpas, Ausrutscher, Patzer
Italiano	sproposito, figuraccia, errore, topica, gaffe
Ελληνικά	γκάφα gkáfa
Română	gafă
Русский	опло́шность oplóšnostʹ, про́мах prómax, оши́бка ošíbka, конфуз konfuz
עברית	פַשְלָה fáshla

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MLA

"gaffe." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/gaffe. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

gaffe. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/gaffe

Chicago

"gaffe." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/gaffe.

BibTeX

@misc{gaffe_2026,
  title = {gaffe},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/gaffe},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}