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Bloody: Most likely the commonest expletive used among the English speaking peoples of the world, and as such it found its place in the language of the war afloat and ashore with universal application. The derivation of the word is understood to go back to the adjuration "By our lady" of the Middle Ages (from Middle English blody, blodi, from Old English blōdiġ, blōdeġ both meaning "bloody"), whence it gradually changed into the current expletive through the dramatists of the 17th and 18th Centuries. Shakespeare uses it over 200 times. Dryden and the Restoration Dramatists popularized it, and "Men of refinement and high culture adopted it as an article of scholarly adornment."[1]
References / notes
- ↑ Edward Fraser and John Gibbons (1925). Soldier and Sailor Words and Phrases. Routledge, London p.27-28.
The above term is listed in our Compendium of the Great War on this day.
Included are trench slang, service terms, expressions in everyday use, nicknames, the titles and origins of British and Commonwealth Regiments, and warfare in general. These words and phrases are contemporary with the war, which is reflected in the language used. Sources include: Soldier and Sailor Words and Phrases, The War Book-of-Facts and Odhams' A.B.C. of the Great War. Feel free to expand upon and improve this content.