How to Fix Misuse of the Word Good

Why is a nice little word like good so troublesome to so many people? Separate yourself from the ungrammatical masses and learn how to use this word correctly.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Remember that good is an adjective and well is an adverb. One exception to this rule is that you can use well as an adjective to refer to health or general well-being.

2. Realize that when you respond "I'm good" to the question "How are you?" you are telling the person that you are beneficial, kind, favorable or perhaps virtuous (depending on how the listener interprets your answer).

3. Correct yourself by responding "I'm well, thank you," which gives a more precise (and polite) response to the person's inquiry.

4. Realize that the ebullient, upbeat response "I'm great" to the question "How are you?" is literally a conceited answer. An astute listener might wonder why you feel it necessary to express to him or her how great you are.

5. Exercise extra caution when you are using the word good as an adverb. It's acceptable to do so only when the verb links the subject to the adverb. Common linking verbs include those of being and of sensing: be, feel, look, seem, taste and smell. "He skates really good." (Wrong) "He skates very well." (Correct) "This apple tastes good." (Correct because taste is a linking verb)

6. The comparative superlative forms of good are better and best, respectively: "The apple is good, but the pear is better and the melon is best."

7. Remember that good can also be used as a noun when it refers to a beneficial or advantageous situation. For example, "This medicine is for your own good" or "He contributes daily to the common good."

8. Refrain from correcting other people when they misuse good unless you are the person's parent or teacher. Instead, set a good example by using good properly when you speak.

9. Exercise extra caution when speaking in a formal setting or when writing. These are the times when it is imperative to use proper grammar.

Tips & Warnings

• "I'm good" is accepted as common usage in spoken English to mean "I'm well or healthy." However, if you wish to speak precisely, it is better to respond "I am well" when someone inquires about your health or well-being.
• If you do not feel well, it is preferable to reply "I am not well." The responses "I am bad" or "I feel bad" have a variety of possible interpretations. "I feel poorly" is also an acceptable response.

[leilam]

on 3/23/2009 Steps 2 and 3 are incorrect. The word "good" has many more meanings than "beneficial, kind, favorable, and virtuous". That is an extraordinarily limited definition of the word.The verb "to be" is a linking verb, not an action verb, and therefore it takes an adjective as a modifier (good), not an adverb (well). Saying "I'm well" when somebody asks "How are you?" is grammatically incorrect. Grammar Girl has an excellent post on this topic here: http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/good-versus-well.aspx.

[Interlingua]

on 9/30/2008 Although this article has some good points, it has the twin marks of too much prescriptivist armchair linguistics: pedanticism and sloppiness. Prescriptivists of this kind love to criticize common usages by reference to dictionary definitions, and this article does the same. Saying "I'm good", in fact, in ordinary speech is not saying "I'm good, beneficial or favorable." And, as a previous comment points out, since "am" is a linking verb, by the very logic of Step 5, using "good" would be preferable to using "well".

[codylau]

on 11/21/2006 This is a tricky one, to be sure. My ear tells me that "I'm well" may be correct as a short form for "I'm doing well"; saying "I'm good" does sound rather self-aggrandizing and is thus admittedly the cause of occasional jeers and jests. On the other hand, saying "I'm well" sounds a little stilted or high-falutin, so watch how you come across using it. It's very true, however, that linking verbs honestly just take adjectives; the adjectives that follow them needn't be called adverbs simply because of their association with verbs. Do watch this rule, though. Just as you wouldn't say, "My math skills are modestly," but instead "modest," you also shouldn't say "I feel badly" unless you are losing feeling in your fingertips. Say instead "I feel bad," suggesting that you fear you may be a bad person.

on 11/22/2005 If I can't say "I'm good" then I can't say my injured friend "has one good arm" to mean anything other than his arm is benevolent and virtuous. Lexicographers and grammarians don't set rules, they survey use to identify them. And, as a rule, many people say "I'm good".

on 11/22/2005 Actually, since *is* is a linking verb, it requires a predicate adjective, or a subject complement, after it. Therefore, it is actually more correct to say, "I am good." "I am well," tends to refer to your physical state (not sick). Other linking verbs (smell, taste, feel) are the same. You wouldn't say, "That rose smells well," unless the rose is capable of smelling. "That rose smells good," is the correct way of saying it has a pleasing smell. As for the rest, think of *good* as an adjective and *well* as an adverb and you'll be pretty good.