One of the most common words in English is the word ‘good’. When we say something is good, it has a positive meaning. When people ask how we’re doing, among the most typical replies is, “I’m good.” Good is oftentimes used as another word for great without thinking about it. That makes the word lose its meaning.
Good is an adjective and could have a whole range of related meanings or synonyms in the thesaurus: better or best; having admirable, pleasing, superior, or positive qualities; not negative, bad, or mediocre; a good idea; a good teacher; morally excellent or admirable; virtuous; righteous; a good man. As a collective noun, good is preceded by the, as in the good.
We also often use ‘good’ to avoid making any specific negative or overly positive evaluation of something. If someone has cooked us dinner, and it isn’t to our liking, we can still say it’s good to not hurt the other person’s feelings. In this case, ‘good’ is only slightly better than saying ‘not bad’. If someone has put a lot of effort into something and your only response is ‘good’, they might be upset.
Synonyms for good are plenty and studying them could be a very pleasant adventure. A passion for words never hurt anybody but could prove to be an asset in the literary world, for one. Additionally, a good tongue will earn you good friends. It’s nice to be told that you are good in one way or another.
What is another word for good?
The thesaurus gives plenty of words synonymous to good. To add some diversity to our daily conversations, we should try using other words for good. Let’s take a look at some synonyms for good that we can use.
Everything is OK
Another informal term for good is OK. This word can be just as vague as good. When we say something is OK, we aren’t really praising it at all. If we get a new phone, but it isn’t very good, we can say it’s OK. To emphasize that it’s not very good, we often use the word ‘just’ before OK, as in ‘This sandwich is just OK.’
So, using OK is very similar to using good. Now we’ll examine some other related words or synonyms for good that can allow us to be more subtle in our expressions of goodness.
That’s Acceptable
Another word for good can be acceptable. When we say that something is acceptable, that means that it is good enough to pass. For example, a car part on an assembly line can be only one of two things: acceptable or unacceptable. There’s no in-between. Likewise, you may turn in the paper to your teacher, and if he or she sees that it is too short, the paper may be unacceptable. Of course, even if the paper is only acceptable, it may not be good.
Although acceptable is among good synonyms, it is usually used for something that is just barely good. If your boss gives you an evaluation, it’s better to be good than acceptable. And if your teacher says that you are acceptable, it is not really much of a compliment, but it is still related.
Satisfactory
Similar to acceptable, satisfactory is among the synonyms for good. We typically define something as satisfactory or unsatisfactory. Unlike acceptable, though, satisfactory involves a related feeling that is more enjoyable: An acceptable movie might not have moved you very much, but a satisfactory one should at least leave you with a smile.
Use the word satisfactory to describe something in a professional way. For instance, if you have a food blog and you give reviews to local restaurants, you might describe a pasta dish as satisfactory. That means that overall, it is pretty good, but it’s not amazing.
Good and Able
One of the subtle synonyms for good is the related adjective able. We often say that something is good and able, meaning that it is fit to do a certain purpose. For example, a 10-year-old used car might be good for driving to the supermarket every day. Otherwise, we might say the car is unable to go anywhere.
Try using this informal adjective when someone asks if you can do something. You may not do a great job, but at least you get it up and running.
Great!
Among its synonyms, great is a big word for good, among the more positive synonyms than satisfactory. When we describe something in this way, we give a lot more emotion to it than good. We say “The concert was great!” when we really, really liked the concert.
This adjective can also be used to describe something big or important and this could very well be the Word of the Day. The Great Lakes bordering the U.S. and Canada receive this accolade because of their size, so does Alexander because of his conquests. Reserve this word for things that are very meaningful.
Super!
Among very good synonyms is super, an informal word that means very good. We’re all familiar with Superman, who has amazing abilities and protects the innocent. We often use exclamation marks after super, just like with great. An informal sentence is, “That ice cream was super!” It could be another Word of the Day.
When we go through the drive-thru at a fast-food restaurant, we may want to super-size our order. That will add a giant drink and fries to whatever we get. Very big objects in the universe are often described as super, as well. A supergiant is one of the largest types of stars in the universe, and a supermassive black hole is the largest type of black hole. Good synonyms can indicate something satisfactory related to food or anything for the five senses.
What is another synonym for ‘do good’?
When you are asked to ‘do good’ in a test or competition, most often, more is expected from you.
Excellent
Excellent is one of many related words for something that is very good. We don’t always use the word excellent when we are excited, so it doesn’t always need an exclamation point. We can use excellent to describe a fine wine or to describe very nice weather. In those cases, we are often calm — and good — when saying it.
If we just use the word by itself, we often use an exclamation point to show enthusiasm. On the other hand, a villain might say the word excellent when their evil plan is working. In that case, they can say excellent very calmly as they rub their hands together. Synonyms to good might be different depending on whose side you are looking.
Like the term good time, others might have a low opinion of it. It could mean high-quality time, which could be really a good time allotted for pleasant things. But if someone plays a prank on you, they are the ones having a good time. Words might have very different but related meanings.
Marvelous
Marvelous is just one word related to good which hit the top mark. When we marvel at something, we look at it with awe. You can imagine what it might be like to meet the heroes of Marvel Comics. We should use complimentary words like marvelous to similarly amazing and helpful people. In a more everyday situation, we could describe an arrangement of flowers as marvelous.
This adjective is not as common as some of the others like super and excellent. Only use marvelous if you want to describe something that is extremely special to you.
Superb
Superb is super with a ‘b’ at the end. Use the adjective superb when something is of top quality. You can often see the word superb on food labels, especially on related things like fancy ice creams, or used to describe a performance, such as a superb ballet. This adjective should be at the tip of your tongue when complimenting your partner for a good meal.
Reserve the word superb for only the best quality products, services, or experiences. Don’t expect something superb to come cheap! Synonyms for good can earn you top points!
Good is good, but which is better?
Good is good, that’s for good, yet synonyms for good mean much more. Understand what adjectives mean, not only in informal word games but to grow your store of synonyms, and be able to use each adjective accurately. You might be called a walking thesaurus but no matter what, knowing what words accurately mean is good.
Wonderful
Wonderful is an adjective also used to describe something very good. You may have heard Louis Armstrong’s song What a Wonderful World. Wonderful is used to describe all the beautiful things that he sees in that song.
Other things we might describe by the adjective wonderful include a waterfall or rainbow. They are words that both imply something beautiful and amazing. This adjective is very similar to the next words we’ll look at.
Splendid
Splendid is a word for something that is good. Similar words also include magnificent and impressive. We can use splendid to describe a nice vacation or a nice person. For instance, “Our trip to Venice was splendid,” or “My friend Morris is a splendid fellow.” It’s best used for describing a related experience, such as, “We had a splendid time.”
Splendid may not be used as much as other synonyms for good because it is reserved for special cases. However, using words like this will make you sound more sophisticated.
“Wow! You look splendid, darling!” You should feel elated because that means glorious, fabulous, wonderful, and/or splendiferous. Use the adjective splendid to describe something of the highest quality.
Commendable
Among synonyms for good is commendable. Something that is commendable deserves praise. We often say that a soldier or a firefighter is commendable if they have done something brave, for example saving someone’s life. If you do something commendable, you may receive a medal or an award for it. For example, you might say, “The commendable officer received an award for saving the woman.”
Informal terms for good
Most of the words we’ve looked at have fairly literal meanings. There are also many idioms that have the meaning of good, as well. Let’s take a look at some of these informal idioms.
Up to Snuff
Up to snuff is an idiom that is related to good. It means that something meets a standard. For example, you may have seen an old building and wondered if it is safe to live or work in. Hopefully, it will be up to snuff, or the building may have to be torn down.
According to various online sources, the phrase up to snuff comes from the use of dried tobacco which people inhaled in the late 17th century. Although it might not sound fancy now, at the time it was a very distinguished pastime, and snuff was sold in exquisite decorative boxes. So, for something to be up to snuff, it had to be of a certain quality.
Tip-top
Saying that something is tip-top is another informal way to say that it is good. Tip-top refers to the highest point of something, such as a mountain. We can use tip-top in a sentence, such as saying, “My bicycle is in tip-top shape.” That means that my bike is so well maintained that I would be ready to take it in a race.
If you are in tip-top shape, then you may be ready to win some sort of athletic competition, as well. Let’s take a look at one more idiom: shipshape.
Shipshape
Shipshape is an informal term very similar to tip-top and up to snuff. It means that something is in good order. If your car is running well, you could say that it is shipshape. In addition, you could describe your room as shipshape if everything is clean and organized. This informal word comes from the British fleet which required ships to be in good condition before sailing.
Use shipshape to describe appearance and functionality. If you’re taking a cruise on a ship, make sure that your cabin is shipshape first!
Well or good?
Among synonyms of good is well, but it can be a little tricky. You need to remember that good is an adjective, while well is an adverb. For example, use good as an adjective in the sentence, “He made a good cappuccino.” But use well as an adverb as in, “He made a cappuccino well.”
Good and well also differ when we talk about health and mental state. When talking about health, use well. For example, “Grandma does not feel well today.” When talking about a mental state, though, use good. After winning the lottery, you might say, “I feel good!”
Another special case with regards to good and well has to deal with senses. Consider the two sentences, “The dog smells good” and “The dog smells well.” Can you tell the difference in meaning? In the first sentence, the dog has a nice smell to it. Perhaps it just had a bath? In the second sentence, the dog has a good sense of smell. It can smell that you just ate meat because of the scent of your clothes.
So, the use of good and well must be done with care. Mastering the difference, though, will make you sound like a real English professional. Now, let’s take a look at terms that can unexpectedly be among synonyms for good.
So good it’s bad
Can two antonyms also be synonyms? That is the case for the words bad and good. Michael Jackson helped make bad good with his famous song of the same name. In this case, bad means cool. You might ask someone what they think of your new sports car, and they reply, “It’s bad.” You should take that as a compliment.
For better or worse, using bad for good is a bit dated, so avoid using it unless you’re at some 1980s-themed event. Otherwise, people may think you are older than you actually are, which could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on the situation.
In Conclusion
As we can see, there are a lot of different ways to say that something is good. We covered almost 20 different words and phrases that have a similar meaning to good, so by now, you should have many options to add variety to your speech. While these words are related to each other, they also have small differences. We need to be sure that we use the appropriate variety of good in the right circumstances only, otherwise, your sentences might come out sounding awkward.
Mastering these shades of meaning will give you a good command of the English language. You will sound not only more articulate but also more sophisticated. You might even say that your English will be so “g o o d”, it’s bad!
Clap
