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Sam Hill is an American English slang phrase, a euphemism or minced oath for "the devil" or "hell" personified (as in, "What in the Sam Hill is that?"). Etymologist Michael Quinion and others date the expression back to the late 1830s; [1] [2] they and others [3] consider the expression to have been a simple bowdlerization, with, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, an unknown origin.
"When Hell freezes over" [2] and "on a cold day in Hell" [3] are based on the understanding that Hell is eternally an extremely hot place. The "Twelfth of Never" will never come to pass. [4] A song of the same name was written by Johnny Mathis. "On Tibb's Eve" refers to the saint's day of a saint who never existed. [5] "When two Sundays come ...
Euphemism [17] Lay waste To kill slang Lights out To die Slang Going into Eternal Oblivion: Liquidation To be killed Euphemism Usually used in political context (such as purges), implies dehumanization. Live on a farm (upstate) To die Euphemism Usually referring to the death of a pet, especially if the owners are parents with children, i.e.
The use of minced oaths in English dates back at least to the 14th century, when "gog" and "kokk", both euphemisms for God, were in use. Other early minced oaths include "Gis" or "Jis" for Jesus (1528). [12] Late Elizabethan drama contains a profusion of minced oaths, probably due to Puritan opposition to swearing.
A euphemism (/ ˈ juː f ə m ɪ z əm / YOO-fə-miz-əm) is an innocuous word or expression used in place of one that is deemed offensive or suggests something unpleasant. [1] Some euphemisms are intended to amuse, while others use bland, inoffensive terms for concepts that the user wishes to downplay.
Amber Samuels, a 30-year-old therapist in Washington, D.C., who has used “unalive” in her own social accounts, says that she has heard clients use it and similar euphemisms in speech. To her ...
A euphemism is a mild, indirect, or vague term substituting for a harsher, blunter, or more offensive term.. It may also substitute a description of something or someone to avoid revealing secret, holy, or sacred names to the uninitiated, or to obscure the identity of the subject of a conversation from potential eavesdroppers.
Image credits: Amedais #8. Not the biggest, but: Molotov said he wasn't bombing Finland, he was bringing them food. In actuality, he was bombing them. Finns got cheeky and called the bombs ...