Lord love a duck en · INTJ
Etymology
Variant of earlier (18th century) Lord love you, God love us, etc (present subjunctive), used as exclamation of exasperation or surprise. The significance of the duck is unknown. Attested from the late 19th century.
Meanings
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An exclamation of surprise.
Near-synonym: lawdamercy
"Lord love a duck!" he observed in a dazed voice — "What's this?"
1913, Ian Hay, The Writings of Ian Hay:Gypsy Rose passed me a tuna on rye. "Lord love a duck, I hope she's not Carita Magenta's ghost.
2000, Noreen Wald, Death Never Takes a Holiday: