English Explanatory Dictionary

goo-goo

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A Filipino person.
noun
  1. A government reformer.
adj
  1. Amorous, affectionate.
intj
  1. The noise of a baby trying to imitate speech.

Word forms

goo-goo goo-goos gugu more goo-goo most goo-goo

Etymology

First attested circa 1899, in US military slang, probably from American soldiers during the Philippine-American War hearing Tagalog gago (“idiot; fool; simpleton”) and Tagalog gaga (“female idiot; female fool”) and considering it to sound like babbling (goo goo ga ga). Possibly influenced by goo-goo eyes, which "was in vogue c. 1900 and may have contributed to this somehow" since early uses of goo-goo and gook refer specifically to prostitutes who followed army camps. See also gook.

Related words

do-gooder goo goo ga ga

Derived words

goo-gooism goo-goo eyes goo goo ga ga
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
Back to search All on G Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary