hell's bells en · INTJ
Pronunciation
- /ˌhɛlz ˈbɛlz/ (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
- (Southern-England) audio
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From hell + -’s + bells, possibly an elaboration of hell (used to express anger, discontent, or unhappiness) with bells chosen to rhyme with hell’s. The noun sense (Datura stramonium) may allude to the often spiny seed capsules of the poisonous plant which somewhat resemble bells when they mature and split open; compare devil's cucumber, devil's snare, devil's trumpet, and devil's weed which are other common names for the plant.
Meanings
-
(mildly, vulgar) An expression of frustration, outrage, or surprise.
What's the matter with his talking so polite? Hell's bells, Harry, no harm in being polite. There's some regular he-men that are just as polite as women, prett' near.
1920, Sinclair Lewis, chapter XXIX, in Main Street: The Story of Carol Kennicott, New York, N.Y.: Harcourt, Brace and Howe, →OCLC, section V, page 352:"You've never had a woman in any of your other pictures. Why do you want one for this?" / "Hell's Bells! You don't think I'm consulting my own preference, I hope."
1932, Edgar Wallace, Merian C[aldwell] Cooper, novelization by Delos W[heeler] Lovelace, chapter 1, in King Kong, trade softcover edition, Nevada City, Calif.: Underwood Books, published 2005, →ISBN, page 6:Hell's bells, they even shot the dog.
2007, Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, No Country for Old Men (motion picture), spoken by Wendell (Garret Dillahunt):
Synonyms
Jerusalem crickets · goodness · Mother of God · shiver my timbers · holy moly · I'm blowed · holy cow · holy buckets · my gosh · I'll be buggered · dang · butter my butt and call me a biscuit · good gracious · fiddlestick · gee willikers · waow · 'sdeath · zoinks · sakes alive · damn · Lord love a duck · fucking Nora · heavens to Betsy · great googly moogly · by the living jingo · darn · lordy · leapin' lizards · hell's bells · hell's teeth · goodness gracious · I'll be hornswoggled · bleeding heck · crikey · googly-moogly · by Allah · good God · cor lummy · gyatt · wowzers · suffering centipedes · my conscience · dagnabbit · nuts · gorblimey · fuck me · bloody Nora · hot damn · my heavens · shit fire and save matches · slap my ass and call me Judy · gee whiz · land sakes · jeezy-peezy · I'll be hanged · jeepers creepers · by George · d'oh · jumping Jesus · by golly · goshdarnit · Christ on a crutch · you don't say · blast · fiddlefart · gad so · I'll be · Holy Mother of God · oh em gee · dash it · good Lord · hell · fudge · heavens · Jesus Christ · I'll be shot · fiddle · bugger · holy guacamole · I never · mercy sakes · jings · Jesum Crow · goddamn · flaming Nora · snakes alive · geeminy · caramba · holy dignity · goodness gracious me · I'll be a son of a bitch · Holy Mother · knock me down with a feather · son of a gun · chihuahua · suffering Sappho · jumping Jehoshaphat · gee · darn it · 'struth · blow me down · zowie · golly gosh · zound · God Almighty · son of a gun · mother of Pearl · good golly · oh my goodness · Christ · diggety · gadzooks · odsfish · oh my heck · flipping heck · goddammit · byrlady · lawks a-mercy · crivvens · I'll be a dirty bird! · oh my · bless my heart · lauks · hold up · lawl · my Lord · ruddy Nora · dang it · knock me over with a feather · sweet mother of Jesus · God in heaven · raasclaat · fook · hang it all · egads · holy ravioli · ohmigod · gosh · good grief · I'll be danged · dammit · wowee · ay · hallo · sweet mother of God · suffering succotash · son of a bitch · what · shut my mouth · bless my soul · shucks · holy crap · oh my fuck · I'll be jiggered · my giddy aunt · great Caesar · by Jove · holy Toledo · ay · holy moley · egad · mamma mia · yikes · sweet Jesus · gorblimey · phooey · cripes · Christ on a raft · sweet Grandma on stilts · holy crickets · holy hell · hello · by juckies · ish · Christ on a stick · holy magnum · Jesus · by thunder · I'll be a monkey's uncle · I'll be bound · Jiminy Cricket · sugar · by gosh · holy kamoley · golly gee willikers · holy smoke · Mary and Joseph · 'sheart · jinkies · by God · my my · blow me pink · golly · zooterkins · what do you know · heck · no way · Lord · oh my life · fuark · oh my days · frick · oh · heavens to Murgatroyd · geez · odzookens · holy fuck · ye gods · goshdarn · stone me · oh my Lord · gadsbud · ods bodikin · chuffing hell · oh my gosh · Christ on a cracker · oh my word · shoot · gramercy · I'll be dipped · fuck · gosh all hemlock · Janey Mack · good gravy · geez Louise · good grief · chihuahua · wow · mirabile dictu · Lord be praised · shitting Nora · oh my stars · bless us · cor blimey · yikes bikes · Christ on a bike · jeepers · holy kamoly · I'll be blowed · Christ alive · zounds · geshmak · blow me over · imagine that · by all that is holy · Jesus H. Christ · God's teeth · Mother of God · Jesus Murphy · ZOMG · gracious · my sainted aunt · my sainted uncle · blow me tight · Judas Priest · blow me up · O gemini · Gadsbodikins · holy stromboli · please · suffering Moses · well · good heavens · hey · drat · great Caesar's ghost · dear God · by jingo · bleeding Nora · fuck me · blow me · I'll be dashed · Jeebus · holy man · hell's bloody bells · peas and rice · man alive · holy mackerel · hell's bloody bells and damnation · dizamn · I'll be darned · I'll be damned · holy crud · oh my goodness gracious · shit · dear me · by gum · dearie me · ruddy hell · eep · curses · holy cricket · crud · mama mia · flipping Nora · heyday · consarn it · my goodness · great balls of fire · I'll be a son of a gun · Jaysus · jeezy peeps · criminy · whoa · crap · lawks · zoiks · sodding hell · doggone · holy cannoli · dadgummit · by gummy · sacré bleu · goodness me · jeez · jeez Louise · doggonit · slap my ass and call me Sally · gaw · holy doodle · deary me · Gordon Bennett · byrlady · piss · blige · cor · oh my Goddess · frak · I say · blimey · ermahgerd · Holy Mother · adzooks · holy shit · oi · fark · Christ almighty · yowzah · 4uck · bummer · fancy that · whoah · 'sblood · begorra · holy macaroni · holy Hannah · stone the crows · cowabunga · strewth · great Scott · omigod · Jupiter · sheesh · Jesus fuck · ZOMFG · shart · omigosh · oh my hell · my God · by Jupiter · get out of town · praise the Lord · heavens above · coo · I'll be dipped in shit · dear Lord · holy Moses · feck · strike me pink · by cracky · hell's bells · shut the front door · glory be · blow me backwards · sweet Mary · poo · fucking hell · my · blow my buttons · my word · rats · holy fudge · fiddlesticks · OMG · hooly dooly · dash · oh my God · bloody hell · holy fuck knuckles · holy crap on a cracker · rah · Holy Mother of God
Translations (7)
ca porca misèria (expression of frustration, outrage, or surprise) · gd pit air iteig (expression of frustration, outrage, or surprise) · ca puta misèria (expression of frustration, outrage, or surprise) · ca quina misèria (expression of frustration, outrage, or surprise) · it porca troia (expression of frustration, outrage, or surprise) · it porca puttana (expression of frustration, outrage, or surprise) · it porca miseria (expression of frustration, outrage, or surprise)