American Heritage Dictionary Entry: good HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY To look up an entry in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, use the search window above. For best results, after typing in the word, click on the “Search” button instead of using the “enter” key. Some compound words (like bus rapid transit, dog whistle, or identity theft) don’t appear on the drop-down list when you type them in the search bar. For best results with compound words, place a quotation mark before the compound word in the search window. guide to the dictionary THE USAGE PANEL The Usage Panel is a group of nearly 200 prominent scholars, creative writers, journalists, diplomats, and others in occupations requiring mastery of language. Annual surveys have gauged the acceptability of particular usages and grammatical constructions. The Panelists NEED HELP SOLVING A CROSSWORD PUZZLE? Go to our Crossword Puzzle Solver and type in the letters that you know, and the Solver will produce a list of possible solutions. -- AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY APP The new American Heritage Dictionary app is now available for iOS and Android. THE AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY BLOG The articles in our blog examine new words, revised definitions, interesting images from the fifth edition, discussions of usage, and more. OPEN DICTIONARY PROJECT Share your ideas for new words and new meanings of old words! Start Sharing Now! -- See word lists from the best-selling 100 Words Series! Find out more! INTERESTED IN DICTIONARIES? Check out the Dictionary Society of North America at http://www.dictionarysociety.com good (gd) Share: Tweet adj. bet·ter (bĕtər), best (bĕst) 1. Being positive or desirable in nature; not bad or poor: a good experience; good news from the hospital. 2. a. Having the qualities that are desirable or distinguishing in a particular thing: a good exterior paint; a good joke. b. Serving the desired purpose or end; suitable: Is this a good dress for the party? 3. a. Not spoiled or ruined: The milk is still good. b. In excellent condition; sound: a good tooth. 4. a. Superior to the average; satisfactory: a good student. b. Used formerly to refer to the US Government grade of meat higher than standard and lower than choice. 5. a. Of high quality: good books. b. Discriminating: good taste. 6. a. Of moral excellence; upright: a good person. b. Benevolent; kind: a good soul; a good heart. c. Loyal; staunch: a good Republican. d. Well-behaved; obedient: a good child. e. Socially correct; proper: good manners. 7. Worthy of respect; honorable: ruined the family's good name. 8. Attractive; handsome: good looks. 9. Beneficial to health; salutary: a good night's rest. 10. Competent; skilled: a good machinist. 11. Complete; thorough: a good workout. 12. a. Reliable; sure: a good investment. b. Valid or true: a good reason. c. Genuine; real: a good dollar bill. 13. a. In effect; operative: a warranty good for two years; a driver's license that is still good. b. Ready or able for a specified or assumed activity: I'm good for another round of golf. 14. a. Able to pay or contribute: Is she good for the money that you lent her? b. Able to elicit a specified reaction: He is always good for a laugh. 15. a. Ample; substantial: a good income. b. Bountiful: a good table. 16. Full: It is a good mile from here. 17. a. Pleasant; enjoyable: had a good time at the party. b. Propitious; favorable: good weather; a good omen. 18. Sports a. Landing within bounds or within a particular area of a court and therefore in play: The first serve was wide, but the second was good. b. Passing between the uprights of the goal and therefore scoring, as a field goal in football. 19. Used to form exclamatory phrases expressing surprise or dismay: Good heavens! Good grief! n. 1. a. Something that is good. b. A good, valuable, or useful part or aspect. 2. Welfare; benefit: for the common good. 3. Goodness; virtue: There is much good to be found in people. 4. a. A product that is bought and sold: frozen goods. b. goods Portable personal property. c. (used with a sing. or pl. verb) Fabric; material. 5. goods Slang Incriminating information or evidence: tried to get the goods on the crook. adv. Informal Well.Idioms: as good as Practically; nearly: as good as new. but good Informal Used as an intensive: The pipe started to leak but good. for good Permanently; forever: I'm moving to Europe for good. good and Informal Very; thoroughly: I'll do it when I'm good and ready. no good Informal 1. Worthless. 2. Futile; useless: It's no good arguing with them. to the good 1. For the best; advantageous. 2. In an advantageous financial position: ended up to the good. [Middle English, from Old English gōd; see ghedh- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] Usage Note: In standard usage, good is an adjective, and the only verbs it should be used with are linking verbs such as be, seem, or appear: The future looks good. The soup tastes good. It should not be used as an adverb with other verbs: The car runs well (not good). Thus, The dress fits well and looks good. See Usage Note at well2. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved. Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices: Indo-European Roots Semitic Roots The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots. 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