jeezly

adj, adv — 2 senses

jeezly

adj

/ˈd͡ʒiːz.li/

Etymology Shift from earlier Jesusly, a euphemism for damned. Equivalent to jeez + -ly. Compare geez.

1

New England, US, Dated, Especially A general intensifier.

  • He looked like somethin' the cat brought in; and us in our play-actin' costooms, with the grease-paint makin' us blush outside of our sickenin' misery under the smoky light of one lamp—the picture it made was a jeezly frost, now you can bet on that and carry money home.1907 May, George Alan England, “Burdocks and Blueberries”, in The All-Story Magazine, page 739:
  • “Get some water,” he shouted, “or the whol’ jeasley camp’ll burn up!”1947, Stewart Hall Holbrook, Little Annie Oakley & Other Rugged People, page 154:
2 more examples
  • "I must be out of my jeezly skull," Hawkeye (who talked to cars) said to the Corvette as he aimed it down the Maine turnpike.1972, Richard Hooker, M*A*S*H Goes to Maine, page 26:
  • The old man set the light on a nearby surface and rummaged one handed in the pockets of his long coat, muttering “Durn house,” and “Jeezly mess,” and “This better be good.”2016, Delia Sherman, The Evil Wizard Smallbone, page 10:
Related terms
jo-jeezly

jeezly

adv

Etymology From Etymology 1 (above), or from jeez + -ly.

1

Canada, New England, US, Dated, Especially Very, extremely.

  • I’m glad it happened, and I’m jeezly glad it’s over.1968, Richard Hooker, M*A*S*H, page 196:
  • What a jim-dandy ideer, sayin' yeh were gonna have a important ball-game fer a excuse to get drunk. An' playing' a jeezly good game on top of 'er, jest to make things look legitimit!1976 November 30, John Challis, “Who is this guy?”, in Medium II, Erindale College, page 8:
2 more examples
  • We learn some of their unique Miramichi expressions. If something is “right some jeezly good” then it’s “the world’s finest, unbelievably good.”[2008, Barb Rees, RV Canada with Boo the Menopausal Van, page 92:
  • “Corned beef and cabbage! We're on jeezly thin ice!”2021 March 7, Matt Lawton, “Curl Interrupted Adventure” (4:59 from the start), in The Great North, season 1, episode 5, spoken by Stan Donovan (Will Forte):

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.