The expression “my goodness” always seemed clear to me, as it is a simple bowdlerisation of “my God”, as are many expletives. However, I have heard many times the expression “goodness me!”, which Google confirms exist (and is less used than “my Goodness”):
This expression doesn't make any sense to me on the construction. Goodness is a noun, so why is it formed that way? Is it an alteration of “my goodness”, or was it formed somewhat independently? Is it a shortening of a longer expression, which would explain its weird grammatical form?
Best Answer
I believe it is a shortening of the phrase goodness gracious me which I think is a mincing of the oath God grace me, which would be a request for God's help.
This is because part of the etymology of gracious is
Shortening phrases is something typical of English, and has left us with three other minces: