Meanings
- Said in dismay, often sarcastically.
Origin
Originated from U.S. broadcaster Herbert Morrison (1905–1989) during his coverage of the Hindenburg disaster: "This is terrible! This is one of the worst of the worst catastrophes in the world! Oh, it's—it's—it's flames... climbing—Oh!—four- or five-hundred feet into the sky; and it—it's a terrific crash, ladies and gentlemen. There's smoke; and there's flames, now; and the frame is crashing to the ground, not quite to the mooring-mast. Oh, the humanity; and all the passengers screaming around here! [Emphasis added]"
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
oh, the humanity. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/oh%2C%20the%20humanity
“oh, the humanity.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/oh%2C%20the%20humanity. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “oh, the humanity,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/oh%2C%20the%20humanity.
Source: oh, the humanity on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.