"gook" meaning in All languages combined

See gook on Wiktionary

Noun [English]

IPA: /ɡuːk/, /ɡʊk/ Audio: En-au-gook.ogg [Australia] Forms: gooks [plural]
Rhymes: -uːk, -ʊk Etymology: First attested in the 1890s in reference to Filipinos (in particular, it is defined in an 1893 citation in Slang and Its Analogues as referring to prostitutes who followed army camps; it is defined similarly in a 1914 work). The word was used of Nicaraguans during the US military occupation there in the 1910s, and Haitians during the US invasion there, when Herbert Seligman noted in 1920 that "The Haitians … are nicknamed 'Gooks'". Other early uses in the 1920 and 30s still refer to people from the Philippines (a 1921 work refers to the Philippines as "Gook Land"), and the term seems to be connected to goo-goo (“a Philippine person”), for which a variety of etymologies have been proposed; see that entry for more. (A later folk etymology suggests that during the Korean War, North Korean soldiers would shout Korean 美國 (Miguk, “America”) at Americans, who interpreted it as "me gook"; this ignores the many earlier examples of the word outside Korea.) Gook was used of Pacific Islanders by World War II, and Koreans and Vietnamese people by the time of the 1950s and 60s US military interventions there, which cemented the shift to meaning "Asian". Etymology templates: {{quote-book|en|author=David R. Roediger|date=1994-03-17|isbn=9780860916581|pages=117–119|publisher=Verso|title=Towards the Abolition of Whiteness: Essays on Race, Politics, and Working Class History}} 1994 March 17, David R. Roediger, Towards the Abolition of Whiteness: Essays on Race, Politics, and Working Class History, Verso, →ISBN, pages 117–119:, {{m|en|goo-goo||a Philippine person}} goo-goo (“a Philippine person”), {{der|en|ko|美國||America|tr=Miguk}} Korean 美國 (Miguk, “America”) Head templates: {{en-noun}} gook (plural gooks)
  1. (slang, vulgar, derogatory, offensive, ethnic slur) A person of (South) East Asian descent; originally a native of the Philippines, but now especially:
    (US, derogatory) A Korean person (especially during the Korean War).
    Tags: US, derogatory, ethnic, offensive, slang, slur, vulgar
    Sense id: en-gook-en-noun-Wbi~YetS Categories (other): American English, English ethnic slurs
  2. (slang, vulgar, derogatory, offensive, ethnic slur) A person of (South) East Asian descent; originally a native of the Philippines, but now especially:
    (US, derogatory) A Vietnamese insurgent in the Vietnam War, particularly a member of the Vietcong.
    Tags: US, derogatory, ethnic, offensive, slang, slur, vulgar
    Sense id: en-gook-en-noun-nBhifnBB Categories (other): American English, English ethnic slurs, English entries with incorrect language header, English entries with language name categories using raw markup Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 15 55 6 11 11 1 Disambiguation of English entries with language name categories using raw markup: 23 50 6 10 9 1
  3. (dated, derogatory) A foreigner (to the speaker), especially the (enemy) natives of a place the speaker's military is at war with or in. Tags: dated, derogatory
    Sense id: en-gook-en-noun-CHpaT8Ng
  4. (dated, derogatory) A foreigner (to the speaker), especially the (enemy) natives of a place the speaker's military is at war with or in.
    (Rhodesia, derogatory) A black insurgent in the Rhodesian Bush War.
    Tags: Rhodesia, dated, derogatory
    Sense id: en-gook-en-noun-7dVU2R5A Categories (other): Rhodesian English
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Derived forms: gookland, gooky Translations (derogatory: East Asian person): rákosník (note: usually Vietnamese) (Czech), spleetoog (Dutch), azianaĉo (Esperanto), pilusilm (Estonian), plöga (Estonian), vinosilmä (Finnish), bridé (english: man) [masculine] (French), bridée (english: woman) [feminine] (French), Schlitzauge [neuter] (German), σχιστομάτης (schistomátis) [masculine] (Greek), muso giallo [masculine] (Italian), occhi a mandorla (Italian), ゴキブリ (gokiburi) (Japanese), チョン (Japanese), żółtek [masculine] (Polish), узкогла́зый (uzkoglázyj) [masculine] (Russian), косоры́лый (kosorýlyj) [masculine] (Russian), китаёза (kitajóza) [Chinese, feminine, masculine, usually] (Russian), япо́шка (japóška) (note: of Japanese) [feminine, masculine] (Russian), guling (Swedish), çekik gözlü (Turkish)
Etymology number: 1 Disambiguation of 'derogatory: East Asian person': 48 48 2 3

Noun [English]

IPA: /ɡʊk/, /ɡuːk/ Forms: gooks [plural]
Rhymes: -ʊk, -uːk Etymology: Possible blend of goop + gunk, or related to gobbledygook. Etymology templates: {{blend|en|goop|gunk|nocap=1}} blend of goop + gunk Head templates: {{en-noun|~}} gook (countable and uncountable, plural gooks)
  1. (informal) Grime or mud. Tags: countable, informal, uncountable Derived forms: gook up
    Sense id: en-gook-en-noun-jxNgKCPa Categories (other): English blends
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Derived forms: gooky
Etymology number: 2

Noun [English]

Forms: gooks [plural]
Head templates: {{en-noun}} gook (plural gooks)
  1. (slang) A dull or hapless person. Tags: slang Related terms: garbley gook (english: probably etymologically unrelated), gook wagon (english: probably etymologically unrelated)
    Sense id: en-gook-en-noun-30sgIPMg
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Etymology number: 3

Inflected forms

Download JSON data for gook meaning in All languages combined (12.6kB)

{
  "derived": [
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0",
      "word": "gookland"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0",
      "word": "gooky"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_number": 1,
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "author": "David R. Roediger",
        "date": "1994-03-17",
        "isbn": "9780860916581",
        "pages": "117–119",
        "publisher": "Verso",
        "title": "Towards the Abolition of Whiteness: Essays on Race, Politics, and Working Class History"
      },
      "expansion": "1994 March 17, David R. Roediger, Towards the Abolition of Whiteness: Essays on Race, Politics, and Working Class History, Verso, →ISBN, pages 117–119:",
      "name": "quote-book"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "goo-goo",
        "3": "",
        "4": "a Philippine person"
      },
      "expansion": "goo-goo (“a Philippine person”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ko",
        "3": "美國",
        "4": "",
        "5": "America",
        "tr": "Miguk"
      },
      "expansion": "Korean 美國 (Miguk, “America”)",
      "name": "der"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "First attested in the 1890s in reference to Filipinos (in particular, it is defined in an 1893 citation in Slang and Its Analogues as referring to prostitutes who followed army camps; it is defined similarly in a 1914 work). The word was used of Nicaraguans during the US military occupation there in the 1910s, and Haitians during the US invasion there, when Herbert Seligman noted in 1920 that \"The Haitians … are nicknamed 'Gooks'\".\nOther early uses in the 1920 and 30s still refer to people from the Philippines (a 1921 work refers to the Philippines as \"Gook Land\"), and the term seems to be connected to goo-goo (“a Philippine person”), for which a variety of etymologies have been proposed; see that entry for more. (A later folk etymology suggests that during the Korean War, North Korean soldiers would shout Korean 美國 (Miguk, “America”) at Americans, who interpreted it as \"me gook\"; this ignores the many earlier examples of the word outside Korea.) Gook was used of Pacific Islanders by World War II, and Koreans and Vietnamese people by the time of the 1950s and 60s US military interventions there, which cemented the shift to meaning \"Asian\".",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "gooks",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "gook (plural gooks)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "American English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English ethnic slurs",
          "parents": [
            "Ethnic slurs",
            "Offensive terms",
            "Terms by usage"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "2002, Colin Baker, Wild Goose: The Life and Death of Hugh Van Oppen, pages 59–60",
          "text": "A few days later he had a 'damned good party' at NORMASH, drinking brandy, and he then 'beat up a Gook [Korean] village.' This resulted in an 'awful hangover all day', […] Later, he walked back to his unit, alone at three o'clock in the morning, having 'swiped a Gook torch.'",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A person of (South) East Asian descent; originally a native of the Philippines, but now especially:",
        "A Korean person (especially during the Korean War)."
      ],
      "id": "en-gook-en-noun-Wbi~YetS",
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "ethnic",
          "ethnic"
        ],
        [
          "slur",
          "slur"
        ],
        [
          "Korean",
          "Korean"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang, vulgar, derogatory, offensive, ethnic slur) A person of (South) East Asian descent; originally a native of the Philippines, but now especially:",
        "(US, derogatory) A Korean person (especially during the Korean War)."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "derogatory",
        "ethnic",
        "offensive",
        "slang",
        "slur",
        "vulgar"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "American English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English ethnic slurs",
          "parents": [
            "Ethnic slurs",
            "Offensive terms",
            "Terms by usage"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "15 55 6 11 11 1",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "23 50 6 10 9 1",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with language name categories using raw markup",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1979, Gustav Hasford, The Short-Timers, New York: Bantam Books, published 1980, page 57",
          "text": "Of course, I've got so many confirmed kills I lost count. Nobody believes me because the gooks drag off their dead.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A person of (South) East Asian descent; originally a native of the Philippines, but now especially:",
        "A Vietnamese insurgent in the Vietnam War, particularly a member of the Vietcong."
      ],
      "id": "en-gook-en-noun-nBhifnBB",
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "ethnic",
          "ethnic"
        ],
        [
          "slur",
          "slur"
        ],
        [
          "Vietnamese",
          "Vietnamese"
        ],
        [
          "insurgent",
          "insurgent"
        ],
        [
          "Vietnam War",
          "Vietnam War"
        ],
        [
          "Vietcong",
          "Vietcong"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang, vulgar, derogatory, offensive, ethnic slur) A person of (South) East Asian descent; originally a native of the Philippines, but now especially:",
        "(US, derogatory) A Vietnamese insurgent in the Vietnam War, particularly a member of the Vietcong."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "derogatory",
        "ethnic",
        "offensive",
        "slang",
        "slur",
        "vulgar"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1924 September 30, John Webb, “Henri II”, in Adventure, volume 48, number 6, page 101",
          "text": "\"Haiti is a country with a history, […]\" \"but how about the Marines, and the gendarmerie; aren't they on the job?\" […] \"You know darn well a civilian can't get away with handling a gook like a Marine can; […]\"",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1999, M. Paul Holsinger, War and American Popular Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia, Greenwood Publishing Group, page 204",
          "text": "In scenes [in Flight, 1929] based on the Marines' slaughter of several hundred Nicaraguan rebels at the Battle of Ocotal in July 1927, the two heroes, who are rivals for the hand of a vivacious nurse (Lila Lee), repeatedly attack the \"gooks\" in support of their comrades on the ground.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A foreigner (to the speaker), especially the (enemy) natives of a place the speaker's military is at war with or in."
      ],
      "id": "en-gook-en-noun-CHpaT8Ng",
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(dated, derogatory) A foreigner (to the speaker), especially the (enemy) natives of a place the speaker's military is at war with or in."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dated",
        "derogatory"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Rhodesian English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1997, Dick Gledhill, One Commando: Rhodesia's Last Years & the Guerilla War it Never Lost, page 55",
          "text": "\"But shit, man, don't we do a fucking good job of it. Jesus, we slew long gooks this last trip,\" quipped Mark.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A foreigner (to the speaker), especially the (enemy) natives of a place the speaker's military is at war with or in.",
        "A black insurgent in the Rhodesian Bush War."
      ],
      "id": "en-gook-en-noun-7dVU2R5A",
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "black",
          "black"
        ],
        [
          "insurgent",
          "insurgent"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(dated, derogatory) A foreigner (to the speaker), especially the (enemy) natives of a place the speaker's military is at war with or in.",
        "(Rhodesia, derogatory) A black insurgent in the Rhodesian Bush War."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Rhodesia",
        "dated",
        "derogatory"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ɡuːk/"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ɡʊk/"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-uːk"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ʊk"
    },
    {
      "audio": "En-au-gook.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/2/24/En-au-gook.ogg/En-au-gook.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/En-au-gook.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "cs",
      "lang": "Czech",
      "note": "usually Vietnamese",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "rákosník"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "spleetoog"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "eo",
      "lang": "Esperanto",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "azianaĉo"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "et",
      "lang": "Estonian",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "pilusilm"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "et",
      "lang": "Estonian",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "plöga"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "vinosilmä"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "fr",
      "english": "man",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "bridé"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "fr",
      "english": "woman",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "bridée"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "Schlitzauge"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "el",
      "lang": "Greek",
      "roman": "schistomátis",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "σχιστομάτης"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "muso giallo"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "occhi a mandorla"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "roman": "gokiburi",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "ゴキブリ"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "チョン"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "żółtek"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "uzkoglázyj",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "узкогла́зый"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "kosorýlyj",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "косоры́лый"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "kitajóza",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "Chinese",
        "feminine",
        "masculine",
        "usually"
      ],
      "word": "китаёза"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "note": "of Japanese",
      "roman": "japóška",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "feminine",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "япо́шка"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "guling"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "48 48 2 3",
      "code": "tr",
      "lang": "Turkish",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "çekik gözlü"
    }
  ],
  "word": "gook"
}

{
  "derived": [
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0",
      "word": "gooky"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_number": 2,
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "goop",
        "3": "gunk",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "blend of goop + gunk",
      "name": "blend"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Possible blend of goop + gunk, or related to gobbledygook.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "gooks",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "~"
      },
      "expansion": "gook (countable and uncountable, plural gooks)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English blends",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "derived": [
        {
          "word": "gook up"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1983, Len O'Connor, A Reporter in Sweet Chicago, page 351",
          "text": "\"Roost No More\" was a yellow gook that Joe's people would spread around, for a fee, on the ledges of houses and commercial buildings plagued by pigeons.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Grime or mud."
      ],
      "id": "en-gook-en-noun-jxNgKCPa",
      "links": [
        [
          "Grime",
          "grime"
        ],
        [
          "mud",
          "mud"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(informal) Grime or mud."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "informal",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ɡʊk/"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ɡuːk/"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ʊk"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-uːk"
    }
  ],
  "word": "gook"
}

{
  "etymology_number": 3,
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "gooks",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "gook (plural gooks)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1949, P.G. Wodehouse, The Mating Season",
          "text": "the poor old gook was spitting blood",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A dull or hapless person."
      ],
      "id": "en-gook-en-noun-30sgIPMg",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang) A dull or hapless person."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "english": "probably etymologically unrelated",
          "word": "garbley gook"
        },
        {
          "english": "probably etymologically unrelated",
          "word": "gook wagon"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "slang"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "gook"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English 1-syllable words",
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
    "English lemmas",
    "English nouns",
    "English terms derived from Korean",
    "English terms with IPA pronunciation",
    "English terms with audio links",
    "English terms with unknown etymologies",
    "Rhymes:English/uːk",
    "Rhymes:English/ʊk"
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "gookland"
    },
    {
      "word": "gooky"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_number": 1,
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "author": "David R. Roediger",
        "date": "1994-03-17",
        "isbn": "9780860916581",
        "pages": "117–119",
        "publisher": "Verso",
        "title": "Towards the Abolition of Whiteness: Essays on Race, Politics, and Working Class History"
      },
      "expansion": "1994 March 17, David R. Roediger, Towards the Abolition of Whiteness: Essays on Race, Politics, and Working Class History, Verso, →ISBN, pages 117–119:",
      "name": "quote-book"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "goo-goo",
        "3": "",
        "4": "a Philippine person"
      },
      "expansion": "goo-goo (“a Philippine person”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ko",
        "3": "美國",
        "4": "",
        "5": "America",
        "tr": "Miguk"
      },
      "expansion": "Korean 美國 (Miguk, “America”)",
      "name": "der"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "First attested in the 1890s in reference to Filipinos (in particular, it is defined in an 1893 citation in Slang and Its Analogues as referring to prostitutes who followed army camps; it is defined similarly in a 1914 work). The word was used of Nicaraguans during the US military occupation there in the 1910s, and Haitians during the US invasion there, when Herbert Seligman noted in 1920 that \"The Haitians … are nicknamed 'Gooks'\".\nOther early uses in the 1920 and 30s still refer to people from the Philippines (a 1921 work refers to the Philippines as \"Gook Land\"), and the term seems to be connected to goo-goo (“a Philippine person”), for which a variety of etymologies have been proposed; see that entry for more. (A later folk etymology suggests that during the Korean War, North Korean soldiers would shout Korean 美國 (Miguk, “America”) at Americans, who interpreted it as \"me gook\"; this ignores the many earlier examples of the word outside Korea.) Gook was used of Pacific Islanders by World War II, and Koreans and Vietnamese people by the time of the 1950s and 60s US military interventions there, which cemented the shift to meaning \"Asian\".",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "gooks",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "gook (plural gooks)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "American English",
        "English derogatory terms",
        "English ethnic slurs",
        "English offensive terms",
        "English slang",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English vulgarities"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "2002, Colin Baker, Wild Goose: The Life and Death of Hugh Van Oppen, pages 59–60",
          "text": "A few days later he had a 'damned good party' at NORMASH, drinking brandy, and he then 'beat up a Gook [Korean] village.' This resulted in an 'awful hangover all day', […] Later, he walked back to his unit, alone at three o'clock in the morning, having 'swiped a Gook torch.'",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A person of (South) East Asian descent; originally a native of the Philippines, but now especially:",
        "A Korean person (especially during the Korean War)."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "ethnic",
          "ethnic"
        ],
        [
          "slur",
          "slur"
        ],
        [
          "Korean",
          "Korean"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang, vulgar, derogatory, offensive, ethnic slur) A person of (South) East Asian descent; originally a native of the Philippines, but now especially:",
        "(US, derogatory) A Korean person (especially during the Korean War)."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "derogatory",
        "ethnic",
        "offensive",
        "slang",
        "slur",
        "vulgar"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "American English",
        "English derogatory terms",
        "English ethnic slurs",
        "English offensive terms",
        "English slang",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English vulgarities"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1979, Gustav Hasford, The Short-Timers, New York: Bantam Books, published 1980, page 57",
          "text": "Of course, I've got so many confirmed kills I lost count. Nobody believes me because the gooks drag off their dead.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A person of (South) East Asian descent; originally a native of the Philippines, but now especially:",
        "A Vietnamese insurgent in the Vietnam War, particularly a member of the Vietcong."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "ethnic",
          "ethnic"
        ],
        [
          "slur",
          "slur"
        ],
        [
          "Vietnamese",
          "Vietnamese"
        ],
        [
          "insurgent",
          "insurgent"
        ],
        [
          "Vietnam War",
          "Vietnam War"
        ],
        [
          "Vietcong",
          "Vietcong"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang, vulgar, derogatory, offensive, ethnic slur) A person of (South) East Asian descent; originally a native of the Philippines, but now especially:",
        "(US, derogatory) A Vietnamese insurgent in the Vietnam War, particularly a member of the Vietcong."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "derogatory",
        "ethnic",
        "offensive",
        "slang",
        "slur",
        "vulgar"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English dated terms",
        "English derogatory terms",
        "English terms with quotations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1924 September 30, John Webb, “Henri II”, in Adventure, volume 48, number 6, page 101",
          "text": "\"Haiti is a country with a history, […]\" \"but how about the Marines, and the gendarmerie; aren't they on the job?\" […] \"You know darn well a civilian can't get away with handling a gook like a Marine can; […]\"",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1999, M. Paul Holsinger, War and American Popular Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia, Greenwood Publishing Group, page 204",
          "text": "In scenes [in Flight, 1929] based on the Marines' slaughter of several hundred Nicaraguan rebels at the Battle of Ocotal in July 1927, the two heroes, who are rivals for the hand of a vivacious nurse (Lila Lee), repeatedly attack the \"gooks\" in support of their comrades on the ground.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A foreigner (to the speaker), especially the (enemy) natives of a place the speaker's military is at war with or in."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(dated, derogatory) A foreigner (to the speaker), especially the (enemy) natives of a place the speaker's military is at war with or in."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dated",
        "derogatory"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English dated terms",
        "English derogatory terms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned",
        "Rhodesian English"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1997, Dick Gledhill, One Commando: Rhodesia's Last Years & the Guerilla War it Never Lost, page 55",
          "text": "\"But shit, man, don't we do a fucking good job of it. Jesus, we slew long gooks this last trip,\" quipped Mark.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A foreigner (to the speaker), especially the (enemy) natives of a place the speaker's military is at war with or in.",
        "A black insurgent in the Rhodesian Bush War."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "black",
          "black"
        ],
        [
          "insurgent",
          "insurgent"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(dated, derogatory) A foreigner (to the speaker), especially the (enemy) natives of a place the speaker's military is at war with or in.",
        "(Rhodesia, derogatory) A black insurgent in the Rhodesian Bush War."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Rhodesia",
        "dated",
        "derogatory"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ɡuːk/"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ɡʊk/"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-uːk"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ʊk"
    },
    {
      "audio": "En-au-gook.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/2/24/En-au-gook.ogg/En-au-gook.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/En-au-gook.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "cs",
      "lang": "Czech",
      "note": "usually Vietnamese",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "rákosník"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "spleetoog"
    },
    {
      "code": "eo",
      "lang": "Esperanto",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "azianaĉo"
    },
    {
      "code": "et",
      "lang": "Estonian",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "pilusilm"
    },
    {
      "code": "et",
      "lang": "Estonian",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "plöga"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "vinosilmä"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "english": "man",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "bridé"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "english": "woman",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "bridée"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "Schlitzauge"
    },
    {
      "code": "el",
      "lang": "Greek",
      "roman": "schistomátis",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "σχιστομάτης"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "muso giallo"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "occhi a mandorla"
    },
    {
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "roman": "gokiburi",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "ゴキブリ"
    },
    {
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "チョン"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "żółtek"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "uzkoglázyj",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "узкогла́зый"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "kosorýlyj",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "косоры́лый"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "kitajóza",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "Chinese",
        "feminine",
        "masculine",
        "usually"
      ],
      "word": "китаёза"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "note": "of Japanese",
      "roman": "japóška",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "tags": [
        "feminine",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "япо́шка"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "guling"
    },
    {
      "code": "tr",
      "lang": "Turkish",
      "sense": "derogatory: East Asian person",
      "word": "çekik gözlü"
    }
  ],
  "word": "gook"
}

{
  "categories": [
    "English 1-syllable words",
    "English blends",
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
    "English lemmas",
    "English nouns",
    "English terms with IPA pronunciation",
    "English terms with unknown etymologies",
    "English uncountable nouns",
    "Rhymes:English/uːk",
    "Rhymes:English/ʊk"
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "gooky"
    },
    {
      "word": "gook up"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_number": 2,
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "goop",
        "3": "gunk",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "blend of goop + gunk",
      "name": "blend"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Possible blend of goop + gunk, or related to gobbledygook.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "gooks",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "~"
      },
      "expansion": "gook (countable and uncountable, plural gooks)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English informal terms",
        "English terms with quotations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1983, Len O'Connor, A Reporter in Sweet Chicago, page 351",
          "text": "\"Roost No More\" was a yellow gook that Joe's people would spread around, for a fee, on the ledges of houses and commercial buildings plagued by pigeons.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Grime or mud."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "Grime",
          "grime"
        ],
        [
          "mud",
          "mud"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(informal) Grime or mud."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "informal",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ɡʊk/"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ɡuːk/"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ʊk"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-uːk"
    }
  ],
  "word": "gook"
}

{
  "categories": [
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
    "English lemmas",
    "English nouns",
    "English terms with unknown etymologies"
  ],
  "etymology_number": 3,
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "gooks",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "gook (plural gooks)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "english": "probably etymologically unrelated",
      "word": "garbley gook"
    },
    {
      "english": "probably etymologically unrelated",
      "word": "gook wagon"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English slang",
        "English terms with quotations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1949, P.G. Wodehouse, The Mating Season",
          "text": "the poor old gook was spitting blood",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A dull or hapless person."
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(slang) A dull or hapless person."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "slang"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "gook"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable All languages combined dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-05-03 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-05-02 using wiktextract (f4fd8c9 and c9440ce). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.