Gadsbodikins

/ɡædzˈbɒdɪkɪnz/ interjection

Definition

An archaic exclamation expressing surprise, shock, or emphatic agreement, common in Early Modern English.

Etymology

A minced oath combining 'God's body' with diminutive suffix '-kins'; used in the 16th-17th centuries as a way to swear without blasphemy.

Kelly Says

Shakespeare's characters would have recognized 'gadsbodikins'—it's a perfect example of how people in the 1600s created an elaborate language of 'fake swears' to avoid offending God.

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