Odd phrases

Posted by ESC on March 21, 2003

In Reply to: Odd phrases posted by Nancy on March 21, 2003

: Where does the saying "for the love of pete" come from
: Thanks

It is a substitute for "for the love of God." Variation: for the love of Mike.

From the archives, under For Pete's Sake": A "Minced oath" means when a person starts to let go with a really bad swear -- like God damn -- realizes he/she shouldn't say it and substitutes a harmless phrase like "Godfrey Daniel." And along the same line, a person starts to say "For God's Sake" and says "For Pete's Sake" instead. Or starts to say the F-word and says instead, "For goodness sake."