Meanings
interjection
alternative oh, dear
- An expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval.
Oh dear, I seem to have lost my ticket.
1 more example
“[…] Churchill, my dear fellow, we have such greedy sharks, and wolves in lamb's clothing. Oh, dear, there's so much to tell you, so many warnings to give you, but all that must be postponed for the moment.”
1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter VII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC
Synonyms & antonyms
Translations
Chinese Mandarin 哎呀, 哎哟
- 哎呀 (āiyā)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- 哎哟 (āiyō)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- 天哪 (tiān na)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Dutch oei
- oeiexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Esperanto ho ve
- ho veexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Finnish voi ei, voi itku
- voi eiexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- voi itkuexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
French aïe, ah là là
- aïeexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- ah là làexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- hélasexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- oh là làexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
German oje
- ojeexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Greek αχού, άχου
- αχού (achoú)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- άχου (áchou)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- αμάν (amán)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- Θεέ μου (Theé mou)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Hebrew אֲבוֹי
- אֲבוֹי (avóy)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Italian oh buon Dio!, ohimè
- oh buon Dio!expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- ohimèexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Japanese あら, あらまあ
- あら (ara)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- あらまあ (aramā)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- あらやだ (ara yada)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- あらいやだ (ara iyada)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- まあ (maa)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Korean 저런, 이런
- 저런 (jeoreon)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- 이런 (ireon)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Malay alamak
- alamakexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Māori āwaiā, taukuri
- āwaiāexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- taukuriexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- taukiriexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Norwegian kjære, kjære vene
- kjæreexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- kjære veneexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Persian !ای وای
- !ای وایexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Polish o rany
- o ranyexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Portuguese Virgem Maria!, Jesus amado!
- Virgem Maria!expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- Jesus amado!expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Russian ах, бо́же мой, ах
- ах, бо́же мой (ax, bóže moj)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- ах (ax)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- ох (ox)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- бо́же мой (bóže moj)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Scottish Gaelic obh obh!
- obh obh!expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Spanish caramba, pobre de
- carambaexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- pobre deexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Swedish käre gud, ack och ve
- käre gudexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- ack och veexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Welsh o diar
- o diarexpression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Yiddish אוי, אוי וויי
- אוי (oy)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
- אוי וויי (oy vey)expression of dismay, concern, worry or disapproval
Cite this entry
APA
oh dear. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/oh%20dear
MLA
“oh dear.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/oh%20dear. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “oh dear,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/oh%20dear.
Source: oh dear on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.