ye gods
English edit
Etymology edit
Seventeenth-century British variant of oh my God, probably intended to avoid blasphemy.[1][2] Compare Danish I guder.
Pronunciation edit
Audio (AU): (file)
Interjection edit
- (idiomatic, dated, euphemistic) Used to express surprise or incredulity.
- 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “Chapter 2”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:
- Would he not far rather lay him down lengthwise along the line of the equator; yea, ye gods! go down to the fiery pit itself, in order to keep out this frost?
Derived terms edit
Translations edit
expression of surprise or incredulity
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References edit
- ^ "Ye gods and little fishes!" (World Wide Words)
- ^ "Gosh, we can't leave God alone when we speak" (The Electric New Paper News)