glory be
6
8.6
- idiom
- Archaic
- Glory be!
Examples
-
Oh, glory be! I can't believe we won the game!
-
- Glory be!
-
After all that hard work, glory be, we finally finished the project!
-
When she heard the good news, she exclaimed, 'glory be!'
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A short sound people make to show surprise, relief, or pleasure
196
6.0
A short shout people make to show happiness or excitement
169
9.9
A strong phrase people say when they are very surprised or shocked
121
5.5
A word people say to show great joy or relief
86
8.2
An exclamation that shows strong surprise or shock
79
4.6
A short laugh showing surprise or small victory
58
1.4
A short shout to show excitement or happiness
52
9.4
A short sound people say to show surprise or admiration
34
8.2
A loud shout to show support or celebration for someone
32
2.6
A shout people make when they are happy or excited
29
9.4
A short informal cry showing surprise or strong feeling
24
7.8
A loud shout of joy people make when they feel excited
16
8.3
A short sound people say to show surprise or excitement
16
8.0
A short joyful shout used to praise, often in religious songs
11
7.5
A short phrase people say to show surprise or shock
10
7.3
People say it to show surprise, anger, or a strong need for an answer
9
9.9
A short sound people make to show surprise or admiration
8
8.2
A loud shout people make to show excitement
7
9.9
A shout that shows joy or encourages others
6
9.9
A loud old-fashioned word people shout to show joy or approval
6
7.7
A short phrase people say to show surprise, shock, or admiration
5
9.3
A loud shout to show joy or excitement
5
7.4
A loud shout people make to show excitement or joy
5
7.9
A short shout people say to show joy or approval
4
9.9
A loud cheer people use to show victory or praise, often in South Asia
4
8.9
A short shout that shows joy or excitement
2
9.9
A short shout of joy used online
2
9.9
A short word people say to show surprise, admiration, or excitement
1
9.9
A short old word people say to show surprise or strong feeling
1
9.1
A soft sound you make when something feels good or brings relief
1
8.3
People say it to show great happiness or excitement, often as a joke
1
8.7
A quiet sound people make when they are surprised or impressed
1
9.8
Words people say to show thanks when something happens because of Allah's kindness
1
9.9
An old word people say to show surprise or strong feeling
A shout used to show great joy or surprise
A short cry of surprise when something is hard to believe
Surface Forms
Morphology
While the noun 'glory' suggests praise and strong positive feeling and 'be' is a copula, the fixed exclamative use 'glory be!' is an archaic/religious interjection whose pragmatic force (relief/surprise) is conventionalized rather than compositionally derived. A B1 learner who knows the words might guess a sense of praise or strong feeling, but would not reliably infer the conventional exclamatory use and register without prior exposure.
Etymology
Glory be comes from old prayers that said 'Glory be to God', where glory meant praise and be was part of that short prayer. People used the shortened phrase to show thanks or surprise, so today glory be is used to express 'relief, joy, or surprise'.