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lions and tigers and bears, oh my

lions and tigers and bears, oh my

9.8
A playful phrase people say to show fear or worry
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : leones, tigres y osos, ¡ay!
  • When faced with endless paperwork, he sighed, 'lions and tigers and bears, oh my,' dreading the work ahead.

Examples

  • Feeling nervous about the scary movie, she turned to her friend and said, 'lions and tigers and bears, oh my!'

  • Before starting their first day at the new school, the twins jokingly chanted, 'lions and tigers and bears, oh my.'

  • The forest was dark and mysterious, so she whispered, 'lions and tigers and bears, oh my,' to break the tension.

  • Oh no! lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

  • Watch out! lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

  • As the thunder rumbled outside, he laughed nervously and exclaimed, 'lions and tigers and bears, oh my!'

  • When the roller coaster loomed above, the kids shouted in excitement, 'lions and tigers and bears, oh my!'

Synonyms

ooh
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Informal
∞ 7.2

A short sound people make to show surprise or pleasure

is more theatrical and expresses comic fear rather than gentle admiration
oh my
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
321 6.6

A short exclamation people use to show surprise or strong feeling

is more theatrical and frames fear as an amusing dramatic reaction
ooo
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Informal
36 9.4

A short sound people say to show surprise or admiration

is more theatrical and aims to convey humorous fear instead of admiration
lordy
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Informal
17 9.4

A short informal cry showing surprise or strong feeling

is more theatrical and focuses on playful fear rather than general shock
ooooh
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Informal
16 8.3

A short sound people say to show surprise or excitement

is more theatrical and lists imagined threats to create playful fear
oooh
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Informal
7 9.1

A short sound people make when they feel a quick pain

is more theatrical and conveys amusing apprehension not pain or discomfort
oh my gosh
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Informal
2 7.0

To show surprise, shock or disbelief in a mild, polite way

is more theatrical and expresses humorous apprehension rather than plain shock
aagh
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Informal
1 9.9

A short cry people make when they are suddenly scared

is more theatrical and shows amused or playful fear, not raw alarm
oh my glob
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Slang
9.9

A friendly phrase people say to show surprise or excitement

is more theatrical and lists imagined dangers to show playful fear
oh my days
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Slang
9.9

A short exclamation showing surprise or excitement

is more theatrical and signals playful fear in a dramatic list
oh my lanta
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Slang
9.9

A short phrase people say when they feel surprised or do not believe something

is more theatrical and presents fear as humorous dramatic exaggeration
oh my heck
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Informal
9.9

A short phrase people say when they feel surprised or do not believe something

is more theatrical and uses playful fear rather than mild surprise
Oh my Allah
vslions and tigers and bears, oh my
  • Informal
9.5

A short phrase showing surprise or disbelief used by people who call on Allah

is more theatrical and uses imagined threats for humorous fear

Antonyms

calmly
110 1.0

In a calm, steady way without showing anger or nervousness

nonchalantly
9 7.4

In a calm way that shows no worry or excitement

Surface Forms

lions and tigers and bears, oh my main

Morphology

lion + and + tiger + and + bears, + oh + mine

The phrase literally lists dangerous animals ('lions', 'tigers', 'bears') followed by the exclamation 'oh my', so its function as an expression of fear, surprise, or apprehension is directly inferable from the constituents. While it is a culturally marked theatrical line (The Wizard of Oz), the overall meaning is compositional and a B1 learner who knows the words would readily grasp the exclamatory sense.

Etymology

Lions and tigers and bears, oh my comes from the famous film 'The Wizard of Oz', where Dorothy and her friends walk into a dark forest and nervously call out those scary animals as they go. That's why people say it now to show 'surprise', 'fear', or 'being overwhelmed', often in a playful way.