wowsers
wowsers Lexical Profile
wowsers Game Scores & Validity
• interjection
North American Used as a playful or informal exclamation to express astonishment, admiration, or sudden surprise.
"Wowsers, look at the size of that pumpkin!"
• noun
Australian Plural form of wowser: puritanical, prudish, or overly moralistic people who seek to deprive others of pleasure or censor entertainment and alcohol.
"Local pub owners complained that a small group of wowsers was campaigning to shut down live music venues across the district."
Word Nuance & Usage
Do not confuse the playful American exclamation 'wowsers' with the Australian and New Zealand noun 'wowser' (plural 'wowsers'), which is a derogatory term for a puritanical prude or killjoy.
• Rhymes for wowsers
Word Origin & Etymology
As an exclamation, 'wowsers' emerged in late 20th-century American slang as a playful elaboration of 'wow', popularized by the animated series Inspector Gadget. The Australian noun 'wowser' originated around 1900 in Sydney, allegedly coined by newspaper editor John Norton from the dialectal British verb 'wow' (to whine or complain).