good

Etymology 1

From Middle English good, from Old English gōd, from Proto-West Germanic *gōd, from Proto-Germanic *gōdaz, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰedʰ- (“to unite, be associated, suit”). Cognate with Russian го́дный (gódnyj, “fit, well-suited, good for; (coll.) good”), год (god), "year", via "suitable time". Related to gather and together, but not to god/God. Eclipsed non-native Middle English bon, bone, boon, boun (“good”) borrowed from Old French bon (“good”), from Latin bōnus (“good”).

adj

1. (of people)
   1. Acting in the interest of what is beneficial, ethical, or moral.
      good intentions
      1460-1500, The Towneley Playsː It is not good to be alone, to walk here in this worthly wone.
      1500?, Evil Tonguesː If any man would begin his sins to reny, or any good people that frae vice deed rest ain. What so ever he were that to virtue would apply, But an ill tongue will all overthrow again.
   2. Competent or talented.
      a good swimmer
      Flatter him it may, I confess, (as those are generally good at flattering who are good for nothing else,) but in the meantime the poor man is left under the fatal necessity of a needless delusion 1704, Robert South, Twelve Sermons Preached on Several Occasions, On the nature and measure of conscience
      Ivor had acquired more than a mile of fishing rights with the house ; he was not at all a good fisherman, but one must do something ; one generally, however, banged a ball with a squash-racket against a wall. 1922, Michael Arlen, “3/19/2”, in “Piracy”: A Romantic Chronicle of These Days
      And Marsha says I am a good cook! Audio (US) (file) 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)
   3. Able to be depended on for the discharge of obligations incurred; of unimpaired credit; used with for.
      Can you lend me fifty dollars? You know I'm good for it.
   4. Well-behaved (especially of children or animals).
      Be good while your mother and I are out.
      Were you a good boy for the babysitter?
   5. (US) Satisfied or at ease; not requiring more.
      Would you like a glass of water? — I'm good.
      [Are] you good? — Yeah, I'm fine.
      Gimme another beer! — I think you're good.
   6. (colloquial, with with) Accepting of, OK with
      My mother said she's good with me being alone with my date as long as she's met them first.
      The soup is rather spicy. Are you good with that, or would you like something else?
   7. (archaic) Of high rank or birth.
2. (of capabilities)
   1. Useful for a particular purpose; functional.
      it’s a good watch;  the flashlight batteries are still good
      1526, Herballː Against cough and scarceness of breath caused of cold take the drink that it hath been sodden in with Liquorice[,] or that the powder hath been sodden in with dry figs[,] for the same the electuary called dyacalamentum is good[,] and it is made thus.
      Plant breeding is always a numbers game.[…]The wild species we use are rich in genetic variation,[…]. In addition, we are looking for rare alleles, so the more plants we try, the better. These rarities may be new mutations, or they can be existing ones that are neutral—or are even selected against—in a wild population. A good example is mutations that disrupt seed dispersal, leaving the seeds on the heads long after they are ripe. 2013 May-June, David Van Tassel, Lee DeHaan, “Wild Plants to the Rescue”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3
   2. Effective.
      a good worker
   3. (obsolete) Real; actual; serious.
      in good sooth
3. (properties and qualities)
   1. (of food)
      1. Having a particularly pleasant taste.
         The food was very good.
         Soupes dorye. — Take gode almaunde mylke […] caste þher-to Safroun an Salt […] c. 1430 (reprinted 1888), Thomas Austin, ed., Two Fifteenth-century Cookery-books. Harleian ms. 279 (ab. 1430), & Harl. ms. 4016 (ab. 1450), with Extracts from Ashmole ms. 1429, Laud ms. 553, & Douce ms. 55 [Early English Text Society, Original Series; 91], London: N. Trübner & Co. for the Early English Text Society, volume I, OCLC 374760, page 11
         dorrẹ̅, dōrī adj. & n. […] cook. glazed with a yellow substance; pome(s ~, sopes ~. […] 1381 Pegge Cook. Recipes page 114: For to make Soupys dorry. Nym onyons […] Nym wyn […] toste wyte bred and do yt in dischis, and god Almande mylk. 1962 (quoting 1381 text), Hans Kurath & Sherman M. Kuhn, eds., Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan Press, ISBN 978-0-472-01044-8, page 1242
      2. Being satisfying; meeting dietary requirements.
         Eat a good dinner so you will be ready for the big game tomorrow.
   2. Of food or other perishable products, still fit for use; not yet expired, stale, rotten, etc.
      The bread is still good.
   3. Valid, of worth, capable of being honoured.
      This coupon is good for a free doughnut.
   4. True, valid, of explanatory strength.
      This theory still holds good even if much higher temperatures are assumed.
   5. Healthful.
      Exercise and a varied diet are good for you.
   6. Pleasant; enjoyable.
      We had a good time.
   7. Favourable.
      a good omen;  good weather
   8. Unblemished; honourable.
      a person's good name
   9. Beneficial; worthwhile.
      a good job
   10. Adequate; sufficient; not fallacious.
       Twinnia biclavata differs from T. nova by inversion IS-1 and a nucleolar shift. Both are good species. 1966, K. Rothfels, Margaret Freeman, “The salivary gland chromosomes of three North American species of Twinnia (Diptera: Simuliidae)”, in Canadian Journal of Zoology, volume 44, number 5, →DOI
4. (colloquial, when with and) Very, extremely. See good and.
   The soup is good and hot.
5. (colloquial) Ready
   I'm good when you are.
   The reports are good to go.
6. Holy (especially when capitalized) .
   Good Friday, Good Wednesday, the Good Book
7. (of quantities)
   1. Reasonable in amount.
      all in good time
   2. Large in amount or size.
      a good while longer;  a good number of seeds;  A good part of his day was spent shopping.  It will be a good while longer until he's done.  He's had a good amount of troubles, he has.
   3. Full; entire; at least as much as.
      This hill will take a good hour and a half to climb.  The car was a good ten miles away.

intj

1. That is good; an elliptical exclamation of satisfaction or commendation.
   Good! I can leave now.

Etymology 2

From Middle English goode (“good, well”, adverb), from the adjective. Compare Dutch goed (“good, well”, adverb), German gut (“good, well”, adverb), Danish godt (“good, well”, adverb), Swedish godt (“good, well”, adverb), all from the adjective.

adv

1. (nonstandard) Well; satisfactorily or thoroughly.
   The boy done good. (did well)
   If Silvertip refuses to give you the horse, grab him before he can draw a weapon, and beat him good. You're big enough to do it. 1906, Zane Grey, The Spirit of the Border: A Romance of the Early Settlers in the Ohio Valley
   I kept my eyes peeled for signs of pursuit. There was none, unless I was being fooled very good. 1970, Troy Conway, The Cunning Linguist, London: Flamingo Books, page 66
   She said, "I don't want to bother you / Consider it's understood / I know I'm not no beauty queen / But I sure can listen good." 1972, Harry Chapin (lyrics and music), “A Better Place to Be”, in Sniper and Other Love Songs
   Marsellus fucked him up good. Word 'round the campfire is it was on account of Marsellus Wallace's wife. 1994, Quentin Tarantino, Roger Avary, Pulp Fiction, spoken by Jules (Samuel L. Jackson)
   The one thing that we can't do...is throw out the baby with the bathwater.... We know our process works pretty darn good and, uh, it’s really sparked this amazing phenomenon of this...high-quality website. 2007 April 19, Jimmy Wales, “Jimmy Wales on the User-Generated Generation”, Fresh Air, WHYY, Pennsylvania https://web.archive.org/web/20070423020137/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9683874
   "They're travellin' good now. We'll leave them be." 2010, Monte Dwyer, Red in the Centre: Through a Crooked Lens, Monyer Pty Ltd, page 14
   Admiral Anderson: You did good, child. You did good. I'm proud of you. 2012, BioWare, Mass Effect 3 (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Citadel (Priority: Earth)

Etymology 3

From Middle English good, god, from Old English gōd (“a good thing, advantage, benefit, gift; good, goodness, welfare; virtue, ability, doughtiness; goods, property, wealth”), from Proto-Germanic *gōdą (“goods, belongings”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰedʰ-, *gʰodʰ- (“to unite, be associated, suit”). Compare German Gut (“item of merchandise; estate; property”).

noun

1. (uncountable) The forces or behaviours that are the enemy of evil. Usually consists of helping others and general benevolence.
2. (countable) A result that is positive in the view of the speaker.
3. (uncountable) The abstract instantiation of goodness; that which possesses desirable qualities, promotes success, welfare, or happiness, is serviceable, fit, excellent, kind, benevolent, etc.
   The best is the enemy of the good.
   He is an influence for good on those girls.
   […]the government must be a weak one indeed, if it should forget that the good of the whole can only be promoted by advancing the good of each of the parts or members which compose the whole. 1788, John Jay, The Federalist Papers, number 64
4. (countable, usually in the plural) An item of merchandise.

Etymology 4

From Middle English goden, godien, from Old English gōdian (“to improve, get better; make better; endow, enrich”), from Proto-West Germanic *gōdōn (“to make better, improve”), from Proto-Germanic *gōdaz (“good, favourable”).

verb

1. (intransitive, now) To thrive; fatten; prosper; improve.
2. (transitive) To make good; turn to good; improve.
3. (intransitive) To make improvements or repairs.
4. (intransitive) To benefit; gain.
5. (transitive) To do good to (someone); benefit; cause to improve or gain.
6. (transitive) To satisfy; indulge; gratify.
7. (reflexive) To flatter; congratulate oneself; anticipate.

Etymology 5

From English dialectal, from Middle English *goden, of North Germanic origin, related to Swedish göda (“to fatten, fertilise, battle”), Danish gøde (“to fertilise, battle”), ultimately from the adjective. See above.

verb

1. (transitive, now chiefly dialectal, Scotland) To furnish with dung; manure; fatten with manure; fertilise.
   April 5 1628, Bishop Joseph Hall, The Blessings, Sins, and Judgments of God's Vineyard Nature was like itself , in it , in the world : God hath taken it in from the barren downs , and gooded it : his choice did not find , but make it thus