Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

goody two shoes

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.03 in modern English

Syllables: goody t-wo shoes
IPA

24

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A goody-goody; a person who is almost always perfectly well-behaved, with an implication of smugness.

Derogatory

Example Sentences

"[…] When jabbed by ethicists, he at first asserted, "I'm not Goody Two-Shoes," before acknowledging a minor lapse."
"[Jeremy Hunt] is charming, thoughtful and amusing in private, and one ally said he was "almost a goody two shoes"."
"But the flaw at the heart of the movie is the decision of this goody-two-shoes to commit a series of robberies to support the family."

Etymology

From goody (“goodwife, obsolete title of respect for a woman”) + two + shoes. Generally considered to have originated with the title character in The History of Little Goody Two-Shoes (1765), which indeed seems to be the source of its later use as a common noun with the present meaning. However, as a proper noun with implications of wealth rather than goodness, it is also found earlier, c. 1687, in the writings of Charles Cotton: “Why, what then; Goody Two-Shoes, what if it be? / Hold you, if you can, your tittle-tattle, quoth he.”

Usage

Derogatory

Inflected Forms

goody-two-shoes (alternative) goody two-shoes (alternative) goodie two shoes (alternative) goodie two-shoes (alternative)

Phrases

baddy two shoes

Synonyms

boy scout

Questions

What does goody two shoes mean?: A goody-goody; a person who is almost always perfectly well-behaved, with an implication of smugness.
Where does goody two shoes come from?: From goody (“goodwife, obsolete title of respect for a woman”) + two + shoes. Generally considered to have originated with the title character in The History of Little Goody Two-Shoes (1765), which indeed seems to be the source of its later use as a common noun with the present meaning. However, as a proper noun with implications of wealth rather than goodness, it is also found earlier, c. 1687, in the writings of Charles Cotton: “Why, what then; Goody Two-Shoes, what if it be? / Hold you, if you can, your tittle-tattle, quoth he.”

How to pronounce goody two shoes

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