2006-10-28 01:25:50 · 4 answers · asked by Kelly 5 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
Blue Murder: To shout blue murder. Indicative more of terror or alarm than of real danger. It appears to be a play on the French exclamation
morbleu; there may also be a distinct allusion to the common phrase "blue ruin."
It goes on to define "blue ruin" as gin (from its tint) a phrase that is no longer common, perhaps because most gins these days are clear, lending new nicknames to the old truth serum: see-through, for one.
2006-10-28 08:38:11 · answer #1 · answered by hfdsguy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
blue murder
noun
1. colloq
Used in phrases describing a terrible din or commotion.
Idiom: scream blue murder (shout blue murder, cry blue murder)
To scream very loudly in pain, alarm, protest, anger, etc.
Etymology: 19c: possibly connected with the archaic French oath morbleu, literally ‘blue death'.
2006-10-28 08:35:05 · answer #2 · answered by Scabius Fretful 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is generally believed to come from the French swear word "Morbleu!", which is a corruption of Mort de Dieu. (Death of God). Morbleu sounds like "Mort bleue", which would have the meaning of "blue death".
2006-10-28 08:37:37 · answer #3 · answered by Doethineb 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋