bless you
intj/ˈblɛs juː/ · /ˈblɛʃ(j)uː/
Etymology Short for God bless you, from Middle English God blesse you, God blisse you.
1
Abbreviation Short for (may) God bless you: said as a short prayer for the recipient.
2
Idiomatic Said to someone who has just sneezed, as a polite remark.
3
Humorous, Idiomatic Used to express non-understanding of someone who has just used an unusual or foreign word or phrase (as if to imply that it sounds like a sneeze).
- ‘What’s that?’ said Ron, pointing at a large dish of some sort of shellfish stew that stood beside a large steak-and-kidney pudding. ‘Bouillabaisse,’ said Hermione. ‘Bless you,’ said Ron. ‘It’s French,’ said Hermione. ‘I had it on holiday, summer before last, it’s very nice.’2000 July 8, J. K. Rowling [pseudonym; Joanne Rowling], “The Goblet of Fire”, in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter; 4), London: Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN, page 221: