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Origin and history of yeah

yeah

American English, colloquial, by 1863, representing a drawling pronunciation of yes. Lighter version yeh is attested by 1920.

also from 1863

Entries linking to yeah

yes(adv., interj.)

Middle English yis, from Old English gise, gyse, gese "so be it!," probably from gea, ge "so" (see yea) + si "be it!," reconstructed to be from Proto-Germanic *sijai-, from PIE *si-, optative stem of root *es- "to be."

Originally stronger than simple yea. Used in Shakespeare mainly as an answer to negative questions. Yes, yes, indicating impatience, anxiety, enthusiasm is attested by mid-15c.

As a noun from 1712, "an utterance of 'yes,'" hence "assent, affirmative reply." As a verb, "assent," by 1820; as "flatter by agreement," by 1921.

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    Trends of yeah

    adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

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    oh
    [Fowler] Often extended for emphasis, as in Oh, baby, a stock saying from c. 1918; oh, boy (by 1917); oh, yeah (1924)....Oh yeah? "really? Is that so?" is attested from 1930....
    whom
    "Yeah, but don't hit him," I said. "There is such a word." Degarmo licked his lips. "I knew there was," he said....
    country
    PUNCH-DRUNK BOXER [Marty Allen]: "Yeah, but in the city they murder me."...
    contrive
    early 14c., controve, contreve, "to invent, devise, plan;" late 14c., "to manage by a plan or scheme," from Old French controver (Modern French controuver) "to find out, contrive, imagine," from Late Latin contropare "to compare" (via a figure of speech), from an assimilated form
    pandemic
    of diseases, "incident to a whole people or region," 1660s, from Late Latin pandemus, from Greek pandemos "pertaining to all people; public, common," from pan- "all" (see pan-) + dēmos "people" (see demotic). Modeled on epidemic; OED reports that it is "Distinguished from epidemi
    sedition
    mid-14c., sedicioun, "rebellion, uprising, revolt, factitious commotion in the state; concerted attempt to overthrow civil authority; violent strife between factions, civil or religious disorder, riot; rebelliousness against authority," from Old French sedicion (14c., Modern Fren
    face
    c. 1300, "the human face, a face; facial appearance or expression; likeness, image," from Old French face "face, countenance, look, appearance" (12c.), from Vulgar Latin *facia (source also of Italian faccia), from Latin facies "appearance, form, figure," and secondarily "visage,
    honor
    c. 1200, onur, "glory, renown, fame earned," from Anglo-French honour, Old French onor, honor "honor, dignity, distinction, position; victory, triumph" (Modern French honneur), from Latin honorem (nominative honos, the form used by Cicero, but later honor) "honor, dignity, office
    render
    late 14c., rendren, rendre, "repeat, say again, recite; translate," from Old French rendre "give back, present, yield" (10c.) and Medieval Latin rendere, from Vulgar Latin *rendere, a variant of Latin reddere "give back, return, restore," from red- "back" (see re-) + combining fo
    agony
    late 14c., "mental suffering" (especially that of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane), from Old French agonie, agoine "anguish, terror, death agony" (14c.), and directly from Late Latin agonia, from Greek agōnia "a struggle for victory" (in wrestling, etc.), in a general sense "e

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