oy

[ oi ]

/ ɔɪ /

Save This Word!

interjection

(used to express dismay, pain, annoyance, grief, etc.)

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

Origin of oy

Borrowed into English from Yiddish around 1890–95

oy²

[ oi ]

/ ɔɪ /

noun Scot.

a grandchild.

Obsolete. a nephew or niece.

1425–75; late Middle English (north and Scots ) o(o), oy(e) <Scots Gaelic ogha; see O'

I urge my Republican friends … I look forward to working with leaders of both parties … Oy.
Advice for Obama: Forget Bulworth. Try Rambo.|Michael Tomasky|May 18, 2013|DAILY BEAST
You put the id back in Yid, Portnoy instructed, and you come to understand the “oy” in goy.
Who Is Philip Roth’s Portnoy Satirizing?|Bernard Avishai|August 28, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Oy Vey: On Tuesday, Mr. Kanye Kardashian revealed a song for his girlfriend, Kim.
Kimye Rumored To Be In Talks for a Shoe Line; Anna Piaggi Inspired Louis Vuitton||August 8, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The axis Ox is often called the real axis, and the axis Oy the imaginary axis.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3|Various

O is called the origin, and x′Ox, y′Oy the axes of x and y respectively.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 6|Various
We might invoke the initial letters of sausage to account for part of the change, but the oy remains a mystery.
The Romance of Words (4th ed.)|Ernest Weekley
In the British Museum copy of this number an old hand has supplied the omitted letters 'oy' and we have Mr. Hoyle.
The Works of Aphra Behn, Volume VI|Aphra Behn
As before in 31, the rotation may be resolved into a shear-pair, in planes perpendicular to Ox and Oy.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 14, Slice 2|Various