Etymology of Expressions

Contractions
(taken from English Through the Ages, by William Brohaugh, Writer’s Digest Books, 1998)


Red indicates contractions used by Jane Austen

ain’t – in use by 1780
‘cause (because) in use by 1450
can’t – by 1655
couldn’t – by 1650
don’t – c. 1640
e’en (even) – c. 1300
e’er (ever) – c. 1300
‘em (them) – c. 1100
I’d – c. 1655
I’ll – c. 1570
I’m – c. 1595
I’ve – c. 1745
it’s – c. 1625 (see also t'is)
ma’am – c. 1670
mustn’t – c. 1745
ne’er (never) – c. 1300
o’ (of) – c. 1300
o’clock – c. 1720
shan’t – c. 1655
she’d – c. 1745
she’ll – c. 1595
shouldn’t – c. 1850
tain’t – c. 1820
they’d – c. 1680
they’ll – c. 1615
they’re – c. 1595
they’ve – c. 1615

t'is or 'tis -- c. 1400
tone (the one) – c. 1350
tother (the other) – c. 1350
‘twas – c. 1590
‘tween – c. 1300
'twere – c. 1590
‘twixt – c. 1350
wasn’t – c. 1850
we’d – c. 1605
we’ll – c. 1580
we’ve – c. 1745
who’d – c. 1640
won’t – c. 1655
wouldn’t – c. 1830
you’d – c. 1605
you’ll – c. 1595
you’re – c. 1595
you’ve – c. 1695

The following is an etymology of expressions in use during the Georgian, Regency and early Victorian periods:

ahem - c. 1765
bah - c. 1600
balderdash - c.1675

barmy - c. 1600
beastly - c. 1200
begad - c. 1600
blast and bugger your eyes - c. 1793
blasted (damned) - c. 1600
bleater - 17th-early 19th C.
blister it - c. 1840
bloody (very) - mid 17th-18th C.
bloody (damned) - c. 1670

Bollocks! (nonsense!) - early 20th C.
botheration - c. 1745

bravo - c. 1765
brava - c. 1805
bugger (noun) - c. 1719
by (Saint) George - c. 1719
by gum - c. 1825
by Jove - c. 1570
by the bye - c. 18th C.
capital - c. 1760
cheeky - c. 1830
cheerio - c. 1910
confound it - c. 1850
criminy - c. 1700
daft - c. 1450
damned - from 16th C.
damnable – from 16th C.
damnation - c. 1630
dang - c. 1790
darling (n) c. 900 (adj) - c. 1510
darn - c. 1790
darned - c. 1815

Dash! (damn!) - c. 1810

Dash it all! - c. 1870

Dash my wig! - c. 1810-1880
dear - c. 1675
dem/demned (damn/damned) - from late 17th C.
demme (damn me) - c. 1753

destroy himself/herself (suicide) c. 17th C.
deuced (damned) - c. 1785
devil a bit – after 1750
devilish - c. 1450
devil of a... - c. 1750
devil take it – from 16th C.
devil to pay - from 15th C.
dickens (What the dickens?) - late 1600
drat - c. 1815
egad - c. 1675
eureka - c. 1570
excelsior - c. 1780
fancy that - c. 1834
fiddle-de-dee - c. 1785
fiddle faddle - from 18th C.
fiddlesticks - from 17th C.
frigging (exceedingly) - c. 1820
frightfully - c. 1830
fudge - c. 1770
fun (joke) - c. 1835
fustian (bombast) - from late 18th C.
gads - from 17th C.
gadzooks - c. 1655
gammon (nonsense) - from 1825
ghastly - c. 1325
glory be - c. 1820
goody - c. 1800
golly - c. 1775
good gracious - from 18th C.
goodness! - mid 19th C.
gosh - c. 1760
go to the devil - from 14th C.
gracious - from 18th C.
gracious alive! - mid 18th C.
gracious me - from 19th

guts for garters - c. 1592
hallo - c. 1570
halloo - c. 1700
hell - c. 1600
hellfire - before 1760
honey - 19th C.
humbug - c. 1740-54
hurrah - c. 1690
huzzah - c. 1595
hurray/hooray - c. 1800
I’ll be bound - c. 1530
I say - from 17th C.
Jupiter! - from 17th C.
kiss my ass - c. 1705
la! - from 16th C.
lawks - c. 1765
lo and behold - by 1810
lud! - c. 1720-1850
mind (note what I say) - from 1806

ninny/ninnyhammer - c. 17th C.
oh! - c. 1550
oh-oh - c. 1730
outside of enough – c. 1811
(check out this article about its use.)
pah - c. 1600

Perdition - c. 1450-1600

Piffle - c. 1847
pish - c. 1595
pooh - c. 1600

Poppycock - c. 1865
pshaw - c. 1675
(all) right - c. 1837
right you are - c. 1865
ring a peal - 18th--mid 19th C
rot it – 17th - 18th C.
rubbish - c. 1630
shag - c. 1790

shit - c. 1510
sirrah - from 16th C.
smashing - c. 1850
son of a bitch (interjection) by 1675
son of a bitch (noun) c. 1710
son of a gun - c. 1710
sweetheart - c. 1290
sweetie - c. 1800
sweetikins - c. 1600
sweeting - c. 1350
tallyho - c. 1770
tosh - (nonsense) c. 1530
What (how) the devil - from 17th C.

Whoreson - from c. 1300
zooks - c. 1635
zounds - c. 1600

Resources:
A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, by Eric Partridge, MacMillan Company, 1970
English Through the Ages, by William Brohaugh, Writer’s Digest Books, 1998
Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition, 1993

Online Etymology Dictionary