Blimin

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. A mild British expletive used to express annoyance or emphasis, a softened substitute for a stronger oath
2. An informal euphemistic exclamation or intensifier, typically used in British speech to add emphasis or show irritation
3. A disguised form of a stronger swear word, used colloquially in Britain to express frustration or surprise

Etymology: "Blimin" is a minced oath, a disguised swear word that lets speakers sound emphatic without saying the rude word outright. It is a clipped form of "blooming," which was itself used as a respectable stand-in for "bloody." The word belongs to the same family as "blimey," from the oath "God blind me," in which "blind" stands in for the sacred name. Speakers softened the oath by altering the sound until its origin was hidden. The adjective is used as an intensifier, much like "bloody" or "damned," to add force to a noun or adjective. Its appeal lies in that double effect: it sounds strong while keeping the speaker's language polite. Because it is so closely tied to informal British speech, its use depends heavily on tone and region.

Synonyms: blooming, bloody, flipping