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Sam Hill

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noun Slang.

hell (used especially in WH-questions as a mild oath expressing exasperation and usually preceded by in or the): Who in Sam Hill are you?

Origin of Sam Hill

1830–40, Americanism; Sam (orig. salmon, variant of Sal(o)mon an oath) + hill, euphemism for hell
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for sam hill

Historical Examples of sam hill

  • It hurts me like Sam-Hill, sometimes, to have to hurt my little man-child.

    The Prairie Mother

    Arthur Stringer

Word Origin and History for sam hill

Sam Hill

euphemism for "Hell," 1839, American English, of unknown origin.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper