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Glite Dictionary
in God's name

in God's name

52 7.9
Words people say to show strong surprise, anger or urgency in a question
  • idiom
  • Informal
: en nombre de Dios
  • What in God's name are you talking about?

Examples

Synonyms

good God
vsin God's name
  • Informal
86 8.2

An exclamation that shows strong surprise or shock

is used mainly in questions to demand explanation or show disbelief
for heaven's sake
vsin God's name
  • Informal
55 7.6

People say it to show impatience or anger

is used especially in questions to show disbelief or urgent feeling
goddam
vsin God's name
  • Offensive
47 9.9

Adds strong anger or surprise to what you say

is used mainly in questions to add disbelief rather than being a raw expletive
for goodness' sake
vsin God's name
  • Informal
37 7.6

Say it when you are annoyed to ask someone to do or stop something

is used mainly in questions to add strong disbelief or urgent emotion
holy crap
vsin God's name
  • Offensive
35 9.6

To say when you are very surprised or shocked

is used mainly in questions to add disbelief or urgent emotional emphasis
for chrissake
vsin God's name
  • Offensive
29 9.9

Say it to show strong anger, frustration, or urgency, and it is rude

is used mainly in questions to show disbelief rather than pressing action
in heaven's name
vsin God's name
  • Informal
10 7.3

People say it to show surprise, anger, or a strong need for an answer

is mainly used only in questions to add strong disbelief or urgency
for the love of Christ
vsin God's name
  • Offensive
3 9.7

A strong spoken request or cry that shows shock and anger

is used mainly in questions to add urgent disbelief rather than pleading
begod
vsin God's name
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A short old word people say to show surprise or strong feeling

is used mainly in questions to add disbelief or urgency rather than being old-fashioned
for chrissakes
vsin God's name
  • Offensive
1 9.9

To show strong frustration and make a request sound urgent

is used mostly in questions to show disbelief and not specifically to command
for Christ's sake
vsin God's name
  • Offensive
1 9.2

A strong word that shows annoyance and makes a request urgent

is used mainly in questions to convey disbelief rather than issuing orders

How Emphatic

good God
  • Informal
86 8.2
in God's name
  • Informal
52 7.9
for heaven's sake
  • Informal
55 7.6
on earth
  • Informal
1 2.8

Surface Forms

in God's name main

Morphology

in + God's + name

Knowing 'in', 'God', and 'name' will allow a B1 learner to recognize an invocation of God's authority, but the phrase's conventional pragmatic function as an emphatic exclamation (expressing disbelief, frustration, or urgency) is idiomatic and not strictly derivable from the literal words. Cross-linguistic parallels (many languages use deity-invocations for emphasis) make it partially accessible, so its meaning is somewhat predictable but still conventionalized.

Etymology

In God's name comes from people who literally called on God's name when they needed help or wanted to show something was very serious. That's why today we use it in questions to show 'anger', 'surprise', or 'urgency'.