Definition of goon
1 : a stupid person
2a : a man hired to terrorize or eliminate opponentsb : enforcer 2b
Explore M-W
Examples of goon in a Sentence
He was beat up by a couple of goons.
an unfortunate tendency to call those who disagree with him “brainless goons”
Recent Examples of goon from the Web
-
But reverberations from the altercation were felt as far as Capitol Hill, where Republican lawmakers scrambled to deal with the unflattering portrayal of their candidate behaving like a hockey goon.
-
The Seven are hired; the Seven retake the town from the industrialist’s goons; the Seven train the townspeople in self-defense; the Seven wait for the inevitable climax in which the industrialist returns with a veritable army.
-
Its veracity is less important than its existence: Every election day, the story went, the Sénateur sent his goons around to the polling stations to offer the poll workers a cold drink, thanking them for their labors.
-
The inevitable conclusion: When Lester declined to sing any more novelty songs for Rondelay, the mobster’s goons beat him (and apparently, crush his windpipe).
-
Chelsea's goons are even tougher than those who have sworn allegiance to Bill and Hill.
-
The Something Awful Photoshop goons go absolutely grindhouse on the posters of classic (and admittedly not so classic) movies, giving them all the sleazy, four tone allure of drive-in horror movie posters from the 70’s.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'goon'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of goon
probably short for English dialect gooney simpleton
First Known Use: 1921
GOON Defined for English Language Learners
goon
playDefinition of goon for English Language Learners
-
: a person who is hired to threaten, beat up, or kill someone
-
: a stupid person
Learn More about goon
-
See words that rhyme with goon Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for goon Nglish: Translation of goon for Spanish speakers
Seen and Heard
What made you want to look up goon? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Writing? Check your grammar now!