good guy

[ good gahy ]

noun

, Informal.

1. a moral or noble person; a hero or someone perceived as one:

   The film's twist is that the monster turns out to be the good guy.

2. any person who is regarded as habitually prone to doing good things or as being morally correct:

   There are times in this job where we don't feel like the good guys.

Word History and Origins

Origin of good guy¹

An Americanism first recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

“The good guys always making the good decisions and the bad guys making all the bad decisions is not representative of the human experience,” Lynch says.

From Los Angeles Times

"He is an excellent broadcaster and a very good guy," Campbell said.

From BBC

“Support the good guys, and have the common sense of right and wrong,” he says.

From BBC

Trump also asked at one point who the "good guys" were in WWI.

From Salon

So actually, to really get into Rhiannon's head, I have to think, “I'm OK, I'm not a monster. These bad things happened to me and I'm a good guy.”

From Salon

Related Words

• Mr. Nice Guy