bally
Mild British oath
Bally is a British euphemism for bloody, used as a mild intensifier expressing annoyance or emphasis: What a bally nuisance!
The word sounds quaint and old-fashioned, associated with early twentieth-century upper-class speech.
It appears mostly in period fiction or deliberate archaism.
euphemism
Mild expletive
- blastedDestroyed or damned
- bloomingProducing flowers now
- blessedReceiving divine favor
- ruddyReddish in complexion
bleeding · flipping · blinking · dratted · confounded · darned · doggone · golly
intensifier
To high degree
- extremelyTo an intense degree
- utterlyTo the fullest extent
- absolutelyCompletely, without exception
- thoroughlyIn complete detail
completely · totally · wholly · entirely · quite · rather · decidedly · positively
damn
Mild expletive
ruddy · bleeding · flipping · blinking · dratted · confounded · darned · doggone · golly · gosh
very
To high degree
- extremelyTo an intense degree
- utterlyTo the fullest extent
- absolutelyCompletely, without exception
thoroughly · completely · totally · wholly · entirely · quite · rather · decidedly · positively · remarkably
- Posh Britishold boy, old chap, old bean, old sport, pip pip
- Carny Slangcarny, barker, roustabout, big top, shill
- Sideshowfreak show, sideshow, bearded lady, fat lady, tattooed lady
- carnivalparade, costume, float, ferris wheel, roller coaster
- minced oathsdarn, heck, gosh, shoot, dang
- Celtic WordsWelsh, Breton, Cornish, Pictish, cwm