Word
oof
UK/ˈuːf/
Definition
interj. an exclamation you use when you see or hear something painful, embarrassing, or surprising. It is like a verbal reaction to a 'gut punch' or a big mistake.
interj. an utterance expressing sympathy, discomfort, or a reaction to a perceived social or physical blow. Common in digital communication to acknowledge a mistake or a difficult situation.
Examples
“Oof, that looks like it really hurt.”
“When I told him the repair would cost a thousand dollars, he just replied with a long 'Oof'.”
“The audience let out a collective 'oof' as the protagonist made the exact social blunder they had been dreading for the entire scene.”
Examples
simple
“Oof, that looks like it really hurt.”
contextual
“When I told him the repair would cost a thousand dollars, he just replied with a long 'Oof'.”
complex
“The audience let out a collective 'oof' as the protagonist made the exact social blunder they had been dreading for the entire scene.”
Usage
Typically used as a standalone reaction or at the start of a sentence; very common in text-based internet slang.
Etymology
An onomatopoeia. Similar to Dutch oef and German uff.
Clipping of ooftish.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Domain
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/oof