oh
interjection
(used as an expression of surprise, pain, disapproval, etc.).
oh
1 American
[oh]
/ oʊ /
interjection
-
(used as an expression of surprise, pain, disapproval, etc.).
Oh, just look at how pretty it is now that you've finished painting!
Oh, no! I misplaced my keys again.
-
(used in direct address to attract the attention of the person spoken to).
Oh, John, will you take these books?
noun
-
oh's,
plural
-
ohs
plural
verb (used without object)
Oh
2
American
[oh]
/ oʊ /
noun
OH
3
American
abbreviation
-
Ohio (approved especially for use with zip code).
-
(used in digital communications) other half.
-
(used in digital communications) overheard.
oh
1
British
/ əʊ /
interjection
OH
2
British
abbreviation
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of oh
First recorded in 1530–40; later spelling of O 2 ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
No tax credits, but oh my God, that is when the love really started.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
That was the time I actually took a breath that night and was like, “Hey, look at this — oh, my God, look at all of this.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
She added: “Maybe you think, oh, she’s not going to serve that well. I think what’s tough on this surface is if she does serve well, she serves big and she serves really good.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
"Henri said to me, 'Heather, I've got to go. My flight's in an hour.' I was like, oh my God."
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
“Oh, oh, oh, Uncle Jack is gonna be so tickled!”
From "Fast Pitch" by Nic Stone
University professor Oh Ji-hye for years walked past the village without going inside, opting instead for AI readings during her commute.
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
"Oh yes, I will play with Freya Godfrey, then I can win. I will tell her that," she jokes.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
Oh, right, I recalled, I’m a neatnik now.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026
Oh, to be a rich teenager in the 1980s, says “The Shards” in so many words.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026
Oh Father, how could I have wept for you?
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
Continued heating produces ferric hydroxysulfate, where OH replaces H2O in the mineral structure.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 10, 2026
Defending champions Arsenal secured a seeded play-off spot, alongside debutants Manchester United, with a 3-0 victory over OH Leuven on Wednesday.
From BBC ● Dec. 17, 2025
The 18-team table is led by three-time winners Barcelona, who swept aside Belgian European debutants OH Leuven 3-0.
From Barron's ● Nov. 12, 2025
“I’ve seen the doc and listened to the podcasts and OH MY GOD.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2024
“It’s been the same for years, one thing after another, and they won’t listen to — OH NOT AGAIN?”
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
The oh’s and ah’s from my sisters were wonderful to hear.
From "Where the Red Fern Grows" by Wilson Rawls
Now he took the hands of Arthur and Isabel together, and Mrs. Morris laughed more sweetly and with more oh's and ho's than ever; for Isabel sedately kissed Arthur's brother.
From Bylow Hill by F. C. (Frederick Coffay) Yohn
It was not spoken freely in words, merely in gestures and little ejaculatory "ah's," "oh's," and "too bad's"; but it was soothing to Dic, and sweet Miss Tousy gained a lifelong friend.
From A Forest Hearth: A Romance of Indiana in the Thirties by Charles Major
Bond gave vent to all the "oh's" and "ah's" that indicate the perfect visitor.
From Under the Skylights by Henry Blake Fuller
But Ivan Nikiforovitch dropped into a chair, and could utter no word beyond prolonged oh's.
From Taras Bulba and Other Tales by Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol
There were repeated "oohs," "ahhs," "ohs" and other vocalizings that reminded us just how remarkable an instrument the pliant Plant voice remains, even as he approaches turning 70 in August.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 3, 2018
Ocean says he spent weeks working on just the vocal tone of the four "ohs" that open the track.
From The Guardian ● Dec. 14, 2012
She shouts her way through bits and sings along to the tune, voice soaring into the almost screamed oh oh ohs.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 12, 2011
Her multitracked vocals appear first, in a waft of elfin ahs and ohs, before she starts a syncopated bass line, digging hard into a groove.
From New York Times ● Aug. 15, 2010
Her accent wasn’t perfect, a little too long on the ohs and too tight in the back of the throat, but it was really quite good.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
