Goofy means silly, clumsy and funny in a slightly foolish way. A goofy smile is a big, silly grin; a goofy dance is a clumsy, funny dance. The tone is usually good-natured: people say it about a friend, their parents or themselves, with no wish to offend. Goofy, the dog from the Disney cartoons, has this word as his name, and his character fits it exactly.
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goofy + noun (goofy smile, goofy joke); look/be goofy; goof around = fool around
- He made a goofy face at the baby, and she finally stopped crying.
- Our team photo is so goofy, everyone has their eyes closed.
- I love my dad's goofy jokes, even when they're terrible.
What changed
First versionThe kids were goofying around in the pool all afternoon.
RevisionThe kids were goofing around in the pool all afternoon.
It's tempting to make a verb from goofy: goofying. But the verb here is a different one, goof around, without the y: The kids were goofing around.
A close word is silly, meaning foolish or not serious. Silly is more neutral and works with a colleague: Sorry, it was a silly mistake. Goofy is more informal and more often describes how someone looks and behaves: a goofy grin. In IELTS Speaking, silly or funny sounds more natural, and goofy isn't used in essays.
Your turn
In the photo, my brother is wearing huge sunglasses and grinning like a cartoon character. He looks so ___.
Show the answer
goofy — Huge sunglasses and a cartoon grin are funny and silly, so he looks goofy. Gloomy sounds similar but means dark and miserable, and a gloomy person doesn't grin from ear to ear.
Describe a funny photo of a friend or relative. Say who is in it and what exactly looks goofy.
In this photo my uncle is dancing with a lampshade on his head, and his goofy grin makes everyone laugh.
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