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“Gofer” or “Gopher”

gofer / gopher are similar-sounding terms with different meanings (referred to as homophones). To better understand the differences, see below for definitions, pronunciation guides, and example sentences using each term.

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Definitions

What each term means

Same sound, different spellings and meanings, shown with a pronunciation guide for each term.

gofer

  • nounan employee whose duties include running errands.

gopher g·OW·f·er

  • nounburrowing rodent of the family Geomyidae having large external cheek pouches; of Central America and southwestern North America.
Usage

Examples in context

Real sentences for each spelling. Hover an example to copy it.

“gofer”

  • Cavett was a copyboy (gofer) at Time magazine when he…

“gopher”

  • Geomys knoxjonesi (Knox Jones's pocket gopher)
  • Geomys texensis (Central Texas pocket gopher)
  • Geomys personatus (Texas pocket gopher)
  • Gopher Flying Club
  • Geomys tropicalis (tropical pocket gopher)
  • Geomys bursarius (plains pocket gopher)
  • SA-13 "Gopher" (9K35 Strela-10)
  • Geomys attwateri (Attwater's pocket gopher)
  • …faced bat and Alcorn's pocket gopher.
  • Geomys arenarius (desert pocket gopher)

Examples are Wikipedia snippets under the CC ShareAlike 3.0 license. Definitions are drawn from WordNet.

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