gaffer
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Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
gaffer¹
- /ɡæfɚ/ US
- /ɡæfə/ UK
Rhymes with -æfə(ɹ)
Where it comes from
From gaff (“hook”) + -er.
* (cinema): The natural lighting on early film sets was adjusted by opening and closing flaps in the tent cloths, called gaff cloths or gaff flaps.
* (glass)
noun gaffers
- A chief lighting technician for a motion-picture or television production.
- A glassblower. The apprentice carries a gather of glass on the blowpipe to the gaffer's bench […]
- Someone aboard a boat whose duty is to gaff a (large) fish once the angler has reeled it in.
gaffer²
Where it comes from
Likely a contraction of godfather, but with the vowels influenced by grandfather. Compare French compère, German Gevatter.
Compare also Old English ġefædera (“godfather”), of which some unattested dialectal descendant may have been an influence.
noun gaffers
- An old person, usually a man. If thou return not, Gammer o'er her pail Will sing in sorrow, 'neath the brinded cow, And Gaffer sigh over his nut-brown ale […]
- The leader of a group or team, such as a boss, foreman, coach, or publican. And you're here to tell me what's what. Just like your bloody gaffer promised.
- A sailor.
- The baby in the house.
Gaffer³
proper noun
- A surname.
Translations
Every language
noun chief lighting technician
| Français | éclairagiste |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | Oberbeleuchter |
| Italiano | responsabile luci |
| Română | maestru de lumini |
| Русский | гла́вный освети́тель glávnyj osvetítelʹ |
noun foreman
| Français | contre-maître |
|---|---|
| Italiano | caposquadra |
| Română | maistru |
| Русский | деся́тник desjátnik, бригади́р brigadír |
Talk about this word "gaffer." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/gaffer. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. gaffer. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/gaffer "gaffer." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/gaffer.Cite this
@misc{gaffer_2026,
title = {gaffer},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/gaffer},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
