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Definition of goodfella

goodfella

/ˈɡʊdˌfɛl.ə/
good · fel · la
Plural:goodfellas
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goodfella Lexical Profile

goodfella Game Scores & Validity

• noun

1

American A member or trusted associate of an organized crime syndicate, especially the Italian-American Mafia.

Example

"In classic crime cinema, a local goodfella often commands respect and fear throughout the neighborhood."

Synonyms
View all synonyms for goodfella

• Nearby Words

good
good king henry
goodbye
goodfella
goodish
goodly
goodness

Word Origin & Etymology

Coined in mid-20th-century American Mafia slang as a phonetic contraction of 'good fellow,' used among Italian-American organized crime figures as a euphemistic code phrase to identify a trusted mobster, and later popularized globally by Nicholas Pileggi's book Wiseguy and Martin Scorsese's 1990 film Goodfellas.

Cite this Entry

Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Goodfella. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 5, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/goodfella
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