As in, 'he scared the bejesus out of me'.
2006-09-18 12:55:34 · 9 answers · asked by the_fatmanwalksalone 4 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
It's an English (as in "from England") expression that goes back to about the early 18th Century. It means what it sounds like it means, which is "by Jesus."
The expression is related to other Britishisms like "bloody," which actually has nothing to do with blood, but is a contraction of "by-our-lady." For several centuries, speaking religious profanity was a capital offense, so expressions like "by God," or "by-our-lady" were dangerous things to let escape one's lips.
Somewhere along the way, the grammtical connection got lost, and it became conversational among trusted friends to use these expressions as pretty much any part of speech. So you might hear someone say, "The by-our-lady bucket came off the end of the by-our-lady chain and fell into the by-our-lady well!!!"
These expressions were just as effective for venting frustration then as they are now. Try "by-our-lady" the next time you need a good cuss word. You may be surprised.
That is how you will hear an expression like "by-Jesus" used as a noun, as in "You scared the by-Jesus out of me!" So it became "bejesus" as a way of masking the meaning in case someone was listening that would have you arrested for blasphemy.
"Taking the Lord's name in vain," by the way, (as mentioned in the 3rd Commandment) does not mean saying "by God," or "Goddammit." All the commandments had practical meanings that are lost in the normal usage of the Ten Commandments nowadays. The 3rd commandment was about honesty in the marketplace. Where few people could read and write, a spoken oath was a legal contract of great force.
To take an oath on the unspeakable name of YHWH in ancient Hebrew times was equivalent to signing a 30-year mortgage today. So the commandment is that no one should take such an oath falsely. That is what taking the Lord's name in vain is. Please don't be afraid that you are going to Hell if you say, "God Damn!" He isn't listening.
2006-09-18 13:29:18 · answer #1 · answered by aviophage 7 · 9⤊ 3⤋
Bejesus Definition
2016-12-14 09:25:34 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
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RE:
Where does the term 'bejesus' come from?
As in, 'he scared the bejesus out of me'.
2015-08-18 23:13:03 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Bejesus
2016-09-30 02:12:28 · answer #4 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
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Maintain a safe distance from him! Luckily your fiance saw the incident so it is less likely that your sister will get people to gang up on you. <- She will probably do this because of being in denial, no-one really wants to believe that they've married an unfaithful man. It will probably take her time to finally admit to there being a problem, but the best thing you could do is stay away!!
2016-03-29 08:45:12 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I've always heard the word as "bejeebers"; it could be a euphemism for people who are afraid of using Jesus' name in vain.
2006-09-18 12:57:48 · answer #6 · answered by ca_christopher1965 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It means: By Jesus.
It is what is know as a "minced oath."
Some minced oaths became well-known as a result of use in theater, where there were sometimes strict taboos on the use of certain religious phrases;.
Censorship caused people to develop a wide variety of minced oaths to avoid swearing on holy names.
Some others:
Gosh darn it = god damn it
Jeepers Creepers = Jesus Christ.
Heck = hell
2006-09-18 13:07:31 · answer #7 · answered by Jay 6 · 4⤊ 1⤋
Not sure but i think IRELAND, i have Irish friends and many of them say this, but i could be wrong
2006-09-18 12:58:53 · answer #8 · answered by Nadine P 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I do not know, But I DO know, they are easy to scare out of people!!
2006-09-18 12:57:57 · answer #9 · answered by Dyma 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think my Dad...he says it a lot.
2006-09-18 13:11:10 · answer #10 · answered by R W 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋