goombah

goombah

1. slang A close, trusted friend. Typically used by or in reference to Italian Americans. Don't worry, you can speak freely in front of Al—he's my goombah.
2. slang A low-level mafia member who uses or threatens violence as a means of coercion or enforcement; a mafia thug or enforcer. A couple of goombahs smashed up my restaurant when I refused to pay protection money.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

goombah

(ˈgumbɑ)
n. a buddy; a trusted friend. (Also a term of address. Ultimately from Italian.) He’s my goombah. I can trust him.
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions
See also:
  • my dawg
  • my dog
  • my dogg
  • run off at the mouth
  • shoot (one's) mouth off
  • shoot off (one's) mouth
  • shoot off at the mouth
  • shoot off one's mouth
  • shoot one’s mouth off
  • lip off
References in periodicals archive
But because her know-it-all surgeon had tossed her goombah into the formalin fixative, they would never know exactly what it had been.
He is being helped in his charity work by fellow Maidstone inmate Bradley "Goombah" Allardyce, 28, who is serving a 12-year sentence for armed robbery.
And as a present Kray gave Allardyce a gold identity bracelet carrying the inscription: "Goombah - My son."
Man, can Monahan write dialogue, and not just goombah threats and vulgarities, although he's great with those.
A movie with its goombah credentials fully intact, "Artie Lange's Beer League" puts auds in the bleachers cheering for tubby New Jersey losers in an adult softball league where anything goes.
Alex Rocco Bella DiNorscio Annabella Sciorra Tony Compagna Raul Esparza </pre> <p>Sidney Lumet continues his remarkable six-decade run of New York-set dramas and Vin Diesel returns from the action-film gulag to give a shambling comic turn as the real-life mobster who hijacked a huge trial in the goombah comedy-drama "Find Me Guilty." Emphasizing the comic aspects of tale will help pull thesp's "Pacifier" fans, though dicey prosthetics and wig work may alienate those who prefer him buff 'n' bald.
These are his fellow Americans Lana (Jennifer Mudge), a young woman more concerned about lunch than art, and Leo (Yul Vazquez), a goombah type who sneers at Hector's learned observations and is primarily interested in getting Lana into bed.
As for the supporting cast, Ana Ortiz (Kristin's sassy Latina friend with a heart of gold) and Larry Romano (Tommy's goombah right-hand man with a heart of gold) are caricatures without much to do.
Also arriving is goombah Joey Fingers, a mob functionary who puts up most of the multimillions needed and gets to like exercising creative control, much to the dismay of the producer, Steve Gallop.
Long on atmosphere but short on invention, "Under Hellgate Bridge" is a by-the-numbers goombah meller about two rivals who square off in the titular New York City neighborhood in the Astoria section of Queens, with predictably messy results.
The four middle-aged guys at the center of the action are all-purpose "ethnic" second bananas, serious actors who idolize De Niro, Pacino and Hoffman but make a living playing "goombah hit men" on "NYPD Blue." Although comfortably enough off in suburban L.A., they would still cut off a pinky to be the next Joe Pesci, an authentic street type who managed to break through to the big time.