gaffe

noun

ˈgaf 

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

Synonyms of gaffe

• blunder
• mistake
• error
• indiscretion

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

Hilton, 48, made a name in the early 2000s publicizing and sometimes belittling celebrities who made public gaffes or otherwise found themselves in trouble with the law. — Matt Lavietes, NBC news, 5 Aug. 2026

The gaffe allowed Rockies third baseman Kyle Karros — who had hit a one-out single — to score from second. — Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 1 Aug. 2026

One of the five errors in the game was a gaffe by Bogaerts in the eighth inning that helped the Rockies take a 7-6 lead. — Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 July 2026

Damon, who stars as Odysseus in Christopher Nolan’s new epic, was the subject of an embarrassing gaffe during Sunday’s telecast of the final game of the 2026 World Cup. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 19 July 2026

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

Rhymes for gaffe

• calf
• chaff
• gaff
• graf
• graff
• graph
• haff
• half
• laugh
• raff
• staff
• staph

Kids Definition

gaffe

noun

ˈgaf 

: a noticeable mistake especially of manners