Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Chiefly New England & Upper Southern U.S. Damned. See Regional Note at tarnation.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- An epithet of reprobation: used as a piece of mild profanity.
Etymologies
- Alteration of eternal. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Twas 'cause it took him so 'tarnal long to dig a basket, that the pertaters grew ahead of him in the row -- that's right!”
“Boys, I'm drinking, and I don't care, fur my spunk's up, and I'd just's soon bet her all the first bet; them tarnal fellers guzzled me out of $1,000 in Cincinnater, and I wants ter get even.”
“You wouldn't feel it so, if ye hadn't been too 'tarnal lazy to change yer seat," sniffed his wife.”
“I don't feel good in the tarnal stuff things, nohow.”
“Pears to me it's tarnal long abeout it; it ollers acts contrairy when mother's in a hurry for her tea!”
Continental Monthly, Vol. 4, No 3, September 1863 Devoted to Literature and National Policy
“He's talked about ye every tarnal day since he first seen ye, an 'they ain't been nothin' in his mind since, except yer welfare.”
“Guess that memorial service must be all over, from the racket they're makin 'with them tarnal carts," he said.”
“Does dirty work fer any tarnal critter at'll pay him well fer it.”
“Who holds the key to that tarnal hole, anyway, Tad?”
“You're so tarnal lazy, you think dinner time is early.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘tarnal’.
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More Adjectival Arcana
List of adjectives such as everduring that do not frequent common speech and writing. A continuation of my list Adjectival Arcana, which had grown to over 7700 words and had become far too cumbersome.
transpontine, fetichistic, everduring, tachygraphic, tachygraphical, holographic, holographical, spectrobolographic, autographic, chirographal, autographal, ipsographic and 1419 more...
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