Tudor & Stuart · oath · interjection
zounds
ZOWNDZ (also ZOONDZ) /zaʊndz/ or /zuːndz/pronunciation given by a dictionary
First recordedby 1592
An exclamation of anger or surprise. It is a softened (minced) form of the oath 'God's wounds!', referring to the wounds of Christ on the Cross.
Where it was first recorded
Arden of Feversham, 1592 (Merriam-Webster also dates it to 1592); Green's Dictionary of Slang's earliest citation is Grim the Collier of Croydon, dated c. 1580, though that play was not printed until 1662, so the earlier date is uncertain.
Also spelled: 'zounds, 'swounds, gadswoons
In its own time
'Zounds, a dog, a rat, a mouse, a cat, to scratch a man to death!
Today
Modern exampleZounds! Who left the gate open and let the goats into the kitchen?
Fine to use today as a theatrical, jokily old-fashioned exclamation.
Minced from 'God's wounds'; once considered profane, now harmless and archaic.
Questions
What does zounds mean?
An exclamation of anger or surprise. It is a softened (minced) form of the oath 'God's wounds!', referring to the wounds of Christ on the Cross.
When was zounds first used?
It is first recorded by 1592 — Arden of Feversham, 1592 (Merriam-Webster also dates it to 1592); Green's Dictionary of Slang's earliest citation is Grim the Collier of Croydon, dated c. 1580, though that play was not printed until 1662, so the earlier date is uncertain.
Can you still use zounds today?
Fine to use today as a theatrical, jokily old-fashioned exclamation.
Sources
- zounds — Merriam-Webster
- zounds — Online Etymology Dictionary
- zounds — Wiktionary
- Romeo and Juliet (full text) — The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, MIT
- zounds! excl. — Green's Dictionary of Slang
Checked 2026-09-30 · verdict: attested — found in the dictionaries and texts listed above