holy cow
interjection Slang.
(used to express bewilderment, surprise, or astonishment.)
QUIZZES
"EVERYDAY" VS. "EVERY DAY" QUIZ: IS IT ONE WORD OR TWO?
An everyday activity is one you do every day. (Thanks, English.) Practice using "everyday," one word, and "every day," two words, in this fun quiz with … everyday example sentences!
Question 1 of 16
“Everyday" is an adjective that describes things that happen habitually or items that are normal items or events.
Origin of holy cow
First recorded in 1920–25
Words nearby holy cow
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Idioms and Phrases with holy cow
holy cow
Also, holy mackerel or Moses or moly or smoke. An exclamation of surprise, astonishment, delight, or dismay, as in Holy cow, I forgot the wine, or Holy mackerel, you won! or Holy Moses, here comes the teacher! or Holy smoke, I didn't know you were here too. The oldest of these slangy expletives uses mackerel, dating from about 1800; the one with Moses dates from about 1850 and cow from about 1920. None has any literal significance, and moly is a neologism devised to rhyme with “holy” and possibly a euphemism for “Moses.”
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
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