gaffe

noun

ˈgaf 

1

: a social or diplomatic blunder

committed an embarrassing gaffe when he mispronounced her name

2

: a noticeable mistake

Kwan did not fall today, as she had in Friday's short program, a gaffe that left her in fourth place.

—Christopher Clarey

Synonyms

• familiarity
• faux pas
• gaff
• impropriety
• indiscretion
• solecism

Examples of gaffe in a Sentence

He realized that he had committed an awful gaffe when he mispronounced her name.

committed a huge gaffe when she started drinking from the finger bowl

Recent Examples on the Web

But online critics quickly seized on his Saturday night gaffe, with the Biden campaign — which has long fought off criticism about the Democratic president's verbal missteps — posting a clip of the moment minutes later. —NPR, 16 June 2024

The skydiving gaffe comes as longstanding concerns about Biden’s cognitive health have intensified. —Emily Hallas, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 15 June 2024

While actuarial tables indicate that Biden and Trump are far more likely than not to live through a second term — and some experts caution their verbal gaffes should not be seen as proof of cognitive decline — voters have still expressed skepticism about their fitness for the job. —Marianne Levine, Washington Post, 14 June 2024

His initial response to the Super Bowl gaffe was a jittery defense, full of proclamations of outrage and particulars about how little time he was given to practice. —Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 19 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, probably a sense development of gaffe gaff entry 1

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

gaffe

noun

ˈgaf 

: a noticeable mistake especially of manners