God knows
Idioms-
Also, goodness knows; heaven knows.
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Truly, certainly, definitely, as in God knows I need a winter coat . This expression, which originated about 1300 as God wot , does not necessarily imply that God is all-knowing but merely emphasizes the truth of the statement it accompanies. The variants using goodness and heaven are euphemisms that avoid taking God's name in vain. [Second half of 1500s]
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Also, God only knows . Only God knows, that is, neither I nor anyone else knows, as in God knows where I've stored those photos , or God only knows how many people will join the march . [Second half of 1500s]
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.
God knows he’d have been blamed had the high-risk mission failed.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 6, 2026
“The Creature learns quickly because its brain and its bodies have already lived once. God knows what this Creature knew before he forgot and needed to be reminded.”
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 16, 2025
That option "puts them at risk of being sent to God knows where, with no assurances of protection," she said.
From BBC • Sep. 3, 2025
And after the U.S. entered World War II, she volunteered as a USO girl, dancing with young soldiers on the Santa Monica Pier, she said, “before they went overseas to God knows what.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 29, 2025
They could hear the diesel engine out on the road, running on God knows what.
From "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy
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.
