A quintessentially British exclamation of surprise, shock, or mild exasperation — the kind of thing someone says when they've received startling news and want to convey astonishment without resorting to profanity. It has a slightly old-fashioned, genteel quality that places it somewhere between genuine shock and theatrical performance. You're more likely to hear it from grandparents and period dramas than from teenagers, but it still gets deployed with genuine feeling by Britons of a certain generation and disposition.
Heavens above, she said, staring at the electricity bill, they've charged us for three months at once.
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(UK) Expression of surprise.
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Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
See all Regional & Other slang on Slangora.