Before the internet turned gooning into a whole lifestyle signifier, it was just another absurdly specific slang term from seedier corners of the web, used to refer to the act of edging and consuming explicit content for prolonged periods of time.

Naturally, someone had to turn the rather universal term "gooner" into the gendered phrase "goonette." Now, a label for women who joke about (or embody) the obsessive gooner archetype, "goonette" has become a meme, a stereotype and for some, a badge of honor.

Here's a recap of how the slang term "goonette" originated and spread online.

Where Did the Term "Goonette" Come From?

The earliest known definition of "goonette" appeared on Urban Dictionary on October 10th, 2019. Posted by user Patheticnikkij, it described a goonette as "a female who is so addicted […] that it takes over her life and takes too priority over everything including family and friends."

Though the entry got little attention at the time, it laid the foundation for a term that would slowly enter the mainstream.

In April 2022, Input Magazine published a piece documenting the rise of "female gooners," women who participate in the same content-obsessed rituals as their male counterparts. Input's description of "goonettes" as women who had dedicated their lives to edging marked one of the first pieces of media coverage to take the concept seriously.

By mid-2023, the term had enough cultural baggage to be mocked in memes. On July 18th, 2023, Twitter / X user @biocompound posted a Woman Shutting the Door meme featuring a man turning down women described as "hoodrats," "autistic femcels" and "goonnettes," choosing instead to lead an incel life. The post received over 3,500 likes before being deleted.

What Are Some Examples of the Word "Goonette" Being Used Online?

By 2024, "goonette" had become a damning punchline. On April 26th, Redditor u/NihilistKnight posted a screenshot to the /r/RedScarePod subreddit for the podcast of the same name, showing an Instagram user asking whether Dostoevsky's White Nights contained anything worth gooning to. The Redditor captioned the post, "Booktok goonettes hit a new low," earning over 300 upvotes.

The label also found its way offline, with Redditor u/ToxicRozic posting a photo of a car covered in hypersexual anime stickers to the subreddit /r/Perth on November 4th, 2024, with the caption, "Is This Your Car? Never Dreamed I'd See A Goonette-mobile up close and in real life." The post drew over 80 upvotes and 30 comments in nine months as the term continued spreading.

By late 2024 and into 2025, TikTok became somewhat of the goonette hub. On December 5th, 2024, TikToker @pokienico called herself "captain of goonettes" in a post that racked up 33,000 likes in eight months.

Another TikToker, @therealmight_, declared, "Goonettes are worse than gooners" in a February 2025 video that reached 3.5 million views and 400,000 likes in seven months.

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For the full history of Goonette, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.