How Well Do You Know English Slang?
small freshwater fish, early 15c., from Middle French goujon, from Old French gojon (14c.), from Latin gobionem (nominative gobio), alteration of gobius, from Greek kobios, a kind of fish, of unknown origin. The figurative sense of "a credulous person" (one who will "bite" at "bait") is from 1580s.
"pivot on the end of a beam," c.1400, from Old French gojon "pin, peg, spike" (13c.), perhaps somehow an altered sense of gudgeon (n.1).
(species Gobio gobio), common small fish of the carp family, Cyprinidae, found in clear, fresh waters of Europe and northern Asia. A grayish or greenish fish, the gudgeon has a barbel at each corner of its mouth and a row of blackish spots along each side. Rarely exceeding a length of 20 cm (8 inches), it lives in schools and feeds mainly on small animals. It is edible and is used as fish bait.