Goodies and Baddies Is a British Way of Saying It
A goody is a treat, or a hero in a story. The pairing of goodies and baddies is distinctly British informal English.
A goody is a small treat or desirable thing, and also a hero in a story. The second use lives almost entirely in the British pairing *goodies and baddies*, which Americans would render as *good guys and bad guys*. It is one of the clearest small markers of which side of the Atlantic a speaker learned their English on. *Goody* is also a dated exclamation of childish delight, and *goody-goody* means smugly virtuous.
- A treat. *A bag of goodies.*
- A hero. *Goodies and baddies.*
- An exclamation. *Oh goody!*
- Goody-goody — smugly good. *A real goody-goody.*
- Goody bag — a bag of small gifts. *A party goody bag.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | goody | One goody. |
| Plural | goodies | Lots of goodies. |
| Compound | goody bag | A goody bag. |
| Compound | goody-goody | A goody-goody. |
| Opposite | baddy | A baddy. |
- The children got a bag of goodies.Treats.
- You can't tell the goodies from the baddies.British.
- Americans say good guys and bad guys.The contrast.
British and American informal pairs
- Goodies and baddies (UK) — good guys and bad guys (US)
- Telly (UK) — TV (US)
- Rubbish (UK) — garbage or trash (US)
- Bloke (UK) — guy (US)
- Queue (UK) — line (US)
From *good* plus the diminutive *-y*, recorded from the 1600s. The hero sense is twentieth-century British.
Is goodies and baddies British?
Yes. Americans usually say good guys and bad guys for the same idea.
What is a goody-goody?
Someone ostentatiously well behaved, in a way that irritates others. It is always mildly critical.