criminy

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Either from Italian crimine (“crime”), or a minced oath from "Christ's money" (in reference to the silver that Judas was paid for betraying Jesus), or a deformation of Gemini (which was recorded as as an oath from the 1660s). First attested in the 1680s.[1][2]

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈkɹaɪ.mɪ.ni/, /ˈkɹɪ.mɪ.ni/

Interjection

criminy

  1. (euphemistic) Expressing surprise or impatience.

Synonyms

References

  1. ^ Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “criminy (interj.)”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
  2. ^ “criminy, int.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.

Anagrams

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