that fellow's the goods
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
He's all right, just the man for the job. "He's got the goods on you!" He's got evidence against you.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “that fellow's the goods” mean?
He's all right, just the man for the job. "He's got the goods on you!" He's got evidence against you.
Is “that fellow's the goods” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.