green earth
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of green earth
First recorded in 1785–95
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.
It means a traipsing into NFL-land, where you look at your TV in mid-January and wonder what on God’s green earth the Carolina Panthers are doing on the field.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026
After viewing the matter from every angle and discussing it in a full editorial conference for an hour, I don’t see how in God’s green earth we can publish “Whose Names Are Unknown.”
From Salon ● Oct. 15, 2024
The sheep came spilling over the hillside, emerging through the low mist where the green earth touched the gray sky, running down into the fields below.
From New York Times ● Nov. 2, 2023
How on God’s green earth did you miss this one, TV Academy?
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2023
“Where on God’s green earth did you get a pistol?” he asked.
From "Root Magic" by Eden Royce
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
