gaff

1 of 5

noun (1)

ˈgaf 

1

a

: a handled hook for holding or lifting heavy fish

b

: a spear or spearhead for taking fish or turtles

c

: a metal spur for a gamecock

d

: a butcher's hook

e

: a climbing iron or its steel point

2

: the spar (see spar entry 1 sense 2a) on which the head of a fore-and-aft sail is extended

3

: gaffe

gaff

2 of 5

verb (1)

gaffed; gaffing; gaffs

transitive verb

1

: to strike or secure with a spear or hook

gaff a salmon

2

: to fit (a gamecock) with a metal spur

gaff

3 of 5

noun (2)

1

a

: something painful or difficult to bear : ordeal

—usually used in the phrase stand the gaff

especially : persistent raillery or criticism

b

: rough treatment : abuse

2

a

: hoax, fraud

b

: gimmick, trick

gaff

4 of 5

verb (2)

gaffed; gaffing; gaffs

transitive verb

1

: deceive, trick

also : fleece

2

: to fix for the purpose of cheating

gaff the dice

gaff

5 of 5

noun (3)

British

: a cheap theater or music hall

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• mistake
• blunder
• offence
• gaffe
• indiscretion
• error

Verb (2)

• trick
• fool
• deceive

Examples of gaff in a Sentence

Noun (1)

you can expect to make some amusing gaffs until you get more familiar with the language

double-check the new writer's grammar, as it's typically riddled with gaffs

Verb (2)

a sleazy schemer who gaffed gullible people into thinking they could get rich with a money-making opportunity

the operators of the traveling carnival had gaffed patrons with a variety of time-honored ruses

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The pole pulled out of the gaff hook and Maxwell’s friends pulled tight on the rope. —Donald Millus, Outdoor Life, 3 July 2025

Transport boxes, electronic scales and gaffs, sharp blades that can be attached to roosters' legs during fights, were found on the property, the news statement said. —Kerry Breen, CBS News, 15 Feb. 2025

Anglers need both an angling license and a recreational turtle license to harvest turtles using angling gear like hook and line, landing nets and gaff hooks. —Kay Johnson, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2025

Privacy and cybersecurity training are supposed to prevent costly and embarrassing employee gaffs. —Abigail Dubiniecki, Forbes, 22 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

borrowed from French gaffe, going back to Middle French, borrowed from Old Occitan gaf, probably derivative of gafar "to seize," of obscure origin

Note: Middle English gaffe, occurring in the early 14th-century "Kildare Poems" (British Library MS Harley 913) and glossed "iron hook" in the Middle English Dictionary, is of uncertain relation to the modern word. It predates attestations of the word in French.

Verb (1)

derivative of gaff entry 1

Noun (2)

of obscure origin

Verb (2)

probably derivative of gaff entry 3

Noun (3)

of obscure origin

First Known Use

Noun (1)

circa 1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Verb (1)

1844, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1896, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (2)

1933, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (3)

1812, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing gaff

• blow the gaff
• gaff-topsail

Rhymes for gaff

• calf
• chaff
• graff
• graph
• haff
• half
• laugh
• raff
• staff
• staph
• autograph
• biograph

Kids Definition

gaff

noun

ˈgaf

1

: a spear or hook for lifting heavy fish

2

: a pole that extends from the back of a mast to support the top of a sail

3

: something hard to take

couldn't stand the gaff

4

: gaffe

gaff verb