gaffe

noun

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

Examples 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 But after years of delays, failed promises, and on-stage gaffes, the truck finally made it onto the streets and into the hands of drivers. Thomas Germain / Gizmodo, Quartz, 9 Mar. 2024 The gaffe launched a Twitter account, a return to the Oscars stage for the pair the following year, and even a John Travolta name-generator. Sara Netzley, EW.com, 3 Mar. 2024 Both candidates are capitalizing on voters’ concerns about their ages to attack each other’s mental fitness, highlighting their opponents’ various gaffes on the campaign trail. Sara Dorn, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 This Week: Be mindful and aware to avoid accidents, including verbal gaffes. Georgia Nicols, The Denver Post, 21 Jan. 2024 Biden, in recent months, has sought to reframe the narrative by highlighting his decades of experience, making jokes about his age and taking jabs at Trump’s own rhetorical gaffes. Sara Dorn, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 Feliciano shouldn’t be excommunicated for pointing out Burford’s gaffe, but perhaps the 49ers look for a young brute to take over at right guard and/or to challenge Brendel at center. Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 26 Feb. 2024 Biden polls poorly against Donald Trump and Nikki Haley and could easily lose with another gaffe during debate or campaigning. Dp Opinion, The Denver Post, 15 Feb. 2024 Biden may also benefit from Trump’s long history of similar verbal gaffes. Justin Sink, Fortune, 9 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gaffe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, probably a sense development of gaffe gaff entry 1

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of gaffe was in 1909

Dictionary Entries Near gaffe

Cite this Entry

“Gaffe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gaffe. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

gaffe

noun
: a noticeable mistake especially of manners

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