gaffe
/ɡaf
/noun
An unintentional act or remark causing embarrassment to its originator; a blunder: in my first few months at work I made some real gaffes his comments are a major diplomatic gaffe...
- He was forced to resign from the position of transport secretary at the end of May after an 11-month tenure marked by a series of gaffes and blunders.
- Embarrassment concerns lighter social gaffes and violations of decorous comportment.
- Otherwise it's merely a gaffe, an embarrassment or a row.
Synonyms
blunder, mistake, error, slip;
indiscretion, impropriety, breach of etiquette, miscalculation, gaucherie, solecism;
French faux pas;
Latin lapsus linguae, lapsus calami
informal slip-up, howler, boo-boo, boner, botch, fluff, fail
British informal boob, bloomer, clanger
North American informal blooper, bloop, goof
British informal, dated floater
vulgar slang fuck-up
Origin
Early 20th century: from French, literally 'boathook' (from Provençal gaf: see gaff1), used colloquially to mean 'blunder'.
Rhymes
- coffee cake
- coffee-coloured
- coffee culture
- coffee cup
- coffee essence
- coffee grinder
- coffee house
- coffee klatch
- coffee klatsch
- coffee maker
- coffee mill
- coffee morning
- coffee palace
- coffee pot
- coffee shop
- coffee table
- coffee-table book
- coffee whitener
- coffer
- cofferdam
- coffered
- cofferer
- coffin
- coffin bone
- coffin joint