Is "goofball" derogatory?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would have said it is a helpful word because it helps him understand he's a goofball.

Haha!’

[Anonymous]

We were driving down the street the other day, and my 3-year-old DD said "mommy, are the cars slow because they're cotton balls?"

I was totally confused and asked her what she meant, and she said "because you say they're cotton balls, right?"

That's when I realized that I call other DRIVERS 'goofballs' when they're slow or squirrely, or don't use their turn signals. LOL.

So OP, maybe you could start calling your kid a 'cotton ball' instead... though even that would probably offend somebody somewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I called my 3-year-old a goofball at Gymboree today and the mother next to me gave me the dirtiest look. I tried to ignore it and later said it again and she very loudly proclaimed to her DS, "that's not a word we use is it Larlo? We use helpful words."

I was kind of taken aback. I consider myself pretty progressive and I've eliminated many words from my vocabulary but goofball is not one.

Is there some negative connotation I'm missing or was this woman just particularly sensitive.

If something is derogatory it means it is offensive to an ethnic group. I can't imagine what is derogatory about "goofball." Ignore the woman. She is one of those who has wrapped her child in bubble paper and will be clutching her pearls for years to come.

Derogatory does not mean offensive to an ethnic group! Where did you get that idea?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I called my 3-year-old a goofball at Gymboree today and the mother next to me gave me the dirtiest look. I tried to ignore it and later said it again and she very loudly proclaimed to her DS, "that's not a word we use is it Larlo? We use helpful words."

I was kind of taken aback. I consider myself pretty progressive and I've eliminated many words from my vocabulary but goofball is not one.

Is there some negative connotation I'm missing or was this woman just particularly sensitive.

Calling someone a " goof ball " is a subtle insult . It's like saying someone is very stupid , naive and Ridiculous but amuses you ... a.k.a. clown. A " goof ball " = clown ... a stupid person that amuses you . The insult is so subtle many dismiss it as not harmful. Example : A narcissist might say some one is below them and say something like ." I 'll excuse the goof ball because he entertains me ".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I called my 3-year-old a goofball at Gymboree today and the mother next to me gave me the dirtiest look. I tried to ignore it and later said it again and she very loudly proclaimed to her DS, "that's not a word we use is it Larlo? We use helpful words."

I was kind of taken aback. I consider myself pretty progressive and I've eliminated many words from my vocabulary but goofball is not one.

Is there some negative connotation I'm missing or was this woman just particularly sensitive.

Calling someone a " goof ball " is a subtle insult . It's like saying someone is very stupid , naive and Ridiculous but amuses you ... a.k.a. clown. A " goof ball " = clown ... a stupid person that amuses you . The insult is so subtle many dismiss it as not harmful. Example : A narcissist might say some one is below them and say something like ." I 'll excuse the goof ball because he entertains me ".

I think we found the parent lol

[Anonymous]

I have an entire family of goofballs.

Wonderful, lovable, occasionally crazy-- Goofballs.

Gym lady is a miserable, angry human being. I feel bad for her kid having to grow up around someone as humorless as that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My teen, as a summer counselor, got into trouble for saying, lollygagger". A parent complained.

Tell your teen a random internet stranger thinks they are completely awesome for using the term loggygagger.

[Anonymous]

How about princess dictator. Asking for a friend.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I called my 3-year-old a goofball at Gymboree today and the mother next to me gave me the dirtiest look. I tried to ignore it and later said it again and she very loudly proclaimed to her DS, "that's not a word we use is it Larlo? We use helpful words."

I was kind of taken aback. I consider myself pretty progressive and I've eliminated many words from my vocabulary but goofball is not one.

Is there some negative connotation I'm missing or was this woman just particularly sensitive.

If something is derogatory it means it is offensive to an ethnic group. I can't imagine what is derogatory about "goofball." Ignore the woman. She is one of those who has wrapped her child in bubble paper and will be clutching her pearls for years to come.

Derogatory does not mean offensive to an ethnic group! Where did you get that idea?

Correct. Calling someone a f a g g o t, for example, has nothing to do with ethnicity, but it sure as hell is derogatory.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We were driving down the street the other day, and my 3-year-old DD said "mommy, are the cars slow because they're cotton balls?"

I was totally confused and asked her what she meant, and she said "because you say they're cotton balls, right?"

That's when I realized that I call other DRIVERS 'goofballs' when they're slow or squirrely, or don't use their turn signals. LOL.

So OP, maybe you could start calling your kid a 'cotton ball' instead... though even that would probably offend somebody somewhere.

My kid just calls them Maryland drivers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I called my 3-year-old a goofball at Gymboree today and the mother next to me gave me the dirtiest look. I tried to ignore it and later said it again and she very loudly proclaimed to her DS, "that's not a word we use is it Larlo? We use helpful words."

I was kind of taken aback. I consider myself pretty progressive and I've eliminated many words from my vocabulary but goofball is not one.

Is there some negative connotation I'm missing or was this woman just particularly sensitive.

Calling someone a " goof ball " is a subtle insult . It's like saying someone is very stupid , naive and Ridiculous but amuses you ... a.k.a. clown. A " goof ball " = clown ... a stupid person that amuses you . The insult is so subtle many dismiss it as not harmful. Example : A narcissist might say some one is below them and say something like ." I 'll excuse the goof ball because he entertains me ".

I never would have guessed Joe Pesci was on DCUM.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I called my 3-year-old a goofball at Gymboree today and the mother next to me gave me the dirtiest look. I tried to ignore it and later said it again and she very loudly proclaimed to her DS, "that's not a word we use is it Larlo? We use helpful words."

I was kind of taken aback. I consider myself pretty progressive and I've eliminated many words from my vocabulary but goofball is not one.

Is there some negative connotation I'm missing or was this woman just particularly sensitive.

Calling someone a " goof ball " is a subtle insult . It's like saying someone is very stupid , naive and Ridiculous but amuses you ... a.k.a. clown. A " goof ball " = clown ... a stupid person that amuses you . The insult is so subtle many dismiss it as not harmful. Example : A narcissist might say some one is below them and say something like ." I 'll excuse the goof ball because he entertains me ".

I never would have guessed Joe Pesci was on DCUM.

Funny how?

[Anonymous]

Less offense than Larlo

[Anonymous]

Oh man is she going to be in for a rough ride when her kid goes to school and learns actual bad words. I have called my kids goofball when they are purposely being silly or funny. It’s like saying they are clowning around. I feel like I would have laughed out loud if I were you. “Larla, we don’t shove sticks all the way up our bottoms, do we? We like to have friends in our family.”

[Anonymous]

We use the word "goof" in our family all the time, to describe all humans and animals who are being silly.

If that happened to me I'd turn to my kid and say loudly "In our family, we have a sense of humor, don't we? We like to have fun!" Because I'm a petty goof.