gadzooks
/ɡædˈzuːks/
"gadzooks" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“gadzooks” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an interjection. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An expression of surprise, shock, etc.
Corpus desk
Index EN-gadzooks · gadzooks · English
gadzooks · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "G" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | gadzooks |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Interjection |
| IPA | /ɡædˈzuːks/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “gadzooks” in English
Rare enough to double-check
gadzooks is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as aninterjection, transcribed /ɡædˈzuːks/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "An expression of surprise, shock, etc.".
No misspelling variants are generated for gadzooks in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: Minced form of God's hooks, a reference to the nails of the crucifixion of Christ. The correct English form is gadzooks, spelled G-A-D-Z-O-O-K-S.
Definition
- 1An expression of surprise, shock, etc.
Recorded use
Wiktionary exampleThese source excerpts show how gadzooks appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
“I should explain that among the books that recently arrived at the office was a slim volume from his pen dealing with the Preparatory School and giving it an enthusiastic build-up. The formative years which we spent there, he said, were the happiest of our life.” “Gadzooks!”
Etymology
Minced form of God's hooks, a reference to the nails of the crucifixion of Christ.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.