Etymologically
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gaffe

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɡæf/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French gaffe (“blunder”),[2][3][4][5][6] probably a special use of gaffe “boat hook”,[6][5][4] from Old Provençal gaf or gafar “to seize”,[4][5] of Germanic origin.[4][5] It is the same word as English gaff “hook”.[2][3][6] The connection between the hook and the blunder is obscure,[5] and Etymonline also allows British slang gaff “to cheat” or “loud rude talk”.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

A blunder, an instance of clumsy stupidity, a faux pas (1909).[7][3][4][5]

Semantic evolution

The word has kept the meaning it had when it was borrowed,[7][3] and is used especially of social or diplomatic blunders, often made in public.[3][1]

Timeline

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A clumsy social or diplomatic blunder; a faux pas.
  2. A noticeable mistake or misjudgment.
  • gaff
  • faux pas

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b c Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press