goody two shoes

See also:goody-two-shoesandgoody two-shoes

English

Alternative forms

• goody-two-shoes,goody two-shoes,goodie two shoes,goodie two-shoes

Etymology

Fromgoody(“goodwife,obsolete title of respect for a woman”)+‎two+‎shoes.Generally considered to have originated with the title character inThe History of Little Goody Two-Shoes(1765), which indeed seems to be the source of its later use as a common noun with the present meaning. However, as a proper noun with implications of wealth rather than goodness, it is also found earlier, c. 1687, in the writings ofCharles Cotton:“Why, what then;Goody Two-Shoes,what if it be? / Hold you, if you can, your tittle-tattle, quoth he.”

Noun

goodytwoshoes(pluralgoody two shoes)

1. (derogatory)Agoody-goody;a person who is exceptionally good and perhaps self-satisfied.
   • 2006June 18, William Safire, quoting Harry Reid, “Logoloco”, inThe New York Times‎^[1],→ISSN:

     […]When jabbed by ethicists, he at first asserted, "I'm notGoody Two-Shoes,"before acknowledging a minor lapse.

   • 2012April 24, Patrick Wintour, “Jeremy Hunt: the 'goody two shoes' caught up in BSkyB scandal”, inThe Guardian‎^[2],→ISSN:

     [Jeremy Hunt] is charming, thoughtful and amusing in private, and one ally said he was "almost agoody two shoes".

   • 2014December 11, Stephen Holden, “Goody-Two-Shoes Loses His Footing”, inThe New York Times‎^[3],→ISSN:

     But the flaw at the heart of the movie is the decision of thisgoody-two-shoesto commit a series of robberies to support the family.

Synonyms

• (exceptionally good person):boy scout

Translations

goody-goody

• Hebrew:יֶלֶד טוֹב יְרוּשָׁלַיִם(he)m(yéled tov yrushaláim)
• Russian:па́инька(ru)f(páinʹka),свято́ша(ru)m(svjatóša)
• Swedish:bror Duktigc

Further reading

• The History of Little Goody Two-Shoeson Wikipedia.Wikipedia