Standard Lemma guide

gofer

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • US: /ˈɡoʊfɚ/
  • homophone: gopher

1

noun

Meaning 1

A worker who runs errands; an errand boy.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: informal

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

an employee whose duties include running errands

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: employee

History

Etymology

From go + fer (for), as in “go for coffee” or “go for that document” etc. Possibly also a pun on the rodent gopher, animals known for both their vast tunneling and their hoarding activities.

Across languages

Translations

24 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Czech: poskok — worker
  • Danish: stikirenddreng — worker
  • Danish: fidibus — worker
  • Dutch: loopjongen — worker
  • Dutch: manusje-van-alles — worker
  • Finnish: juoksupoika — worker
  • Finnish: lähetti — worker
  • Finnish: tsuppari — worker
  • German: Aushilfskraft — worker
  • Hungarian: fullajtár — worker
  • Hungarian: lóti-futi — worker
  • Japanese: パシリ (pashiri) — worker
  • Māori: tonotono — worker
  • Norwegian: løpegutt — worker
  • Norwegian: visergutt — worker
  • Plautdietsch: Schekjbenjel — worker
  • Polish: chłopiec na posyłki — worker
  • Portuguese: moço de recados — worker
  • Russian: ма́льчик на побегушках (málʹčik na pobeguškax) — worker
  • Spanish: mandadero — worker
  • Swedish: springpojke — worker
  • Tamil: அல்லக்கை (allakkai) — worker
  • Ukrainian: хлопчик на побігашках (xlopčyk na pobihaškax) — worker
  • Ukrainian: хлопчик на побігеньках (xlopčyk na pobihenʹkax) — worker