Got the morbs

"Got the morbs" is a slang phrase or euphemism used in the Victorian era. The phrase describes a person afflicted with temporary melancholy or sadness. The term was defined in James Redding Ware's 1909 book Passing English of the Victorian Era.

Dictionary definition for "got the morbs" in Passing English of the Victorian Era (1909)
This article is about the Victorian era slang phrase/euphenism. For the Morbius meme, see Morbius (film) § Internet memes.

Etymology and history

Morbs is a slang abstract noun that is derived from the adjective morbid.[1] The word morbid came from the original Latin word morbidus, which meant 'sickly', 'diseased' or 'unwholesome'.[2] The word also has roots in the Latin word morbus, which meant 'sorrow', 'grief', or 'distress of the mind'.[3] The phrase appeared in the book Passing English of the Victorian Era (1909) by James Redding Ware.[1] The book states that the phrase dates from 1880 and defines it: "Temporary melancholia. Abstract noun coined from adjective morbid." The British lexicographer Susie Dent described "having the morbs" as "to sit under a cloud of despondency".[4]

In 2015, the Boston-based indie rock band the Sheila Divine released a full-length album titled The Morbs.[5] An all-girl band in Lincoln, Nebraska, named themselves the Morbs after the phrase.[6]

See also

References
  1. Ware, J. Redding (1909). Passing English of the Victorian Era: a dictionary of heterodox English, slang and phrase. London: George Routledge & Sons Limited. p. 146. Archived from the original on 2022-12-18. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
  2. Smith, C. J. (October 19, 2022). Synonyms Discriminated. Frankfurt, Germany: Outlook Verlag. p. 459. ISBN 9783368127015. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
  3. Bartlett, Gary Norton (1996). Translations and Translation Principles in the Old English and Old High German Versions of Boethius's "De Consolatione Philosophiae". Minneapolis, Wisconsin: University of Minnesota. p. 165. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
  4. Dent, Susie (1 September 2022). "From jubbity to mubble fubbles, anxiety is well catered for in the historical dictionary". Associated Newspapers Limited. Archived from the original on 25 October 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  5. Marotta, Michael (25 November 2015). "The Sheila Divine Are Back with New Album The Morbs". Metro Corp. Boston Magazine. Archived from the original on 19 December 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  6. Harazin, Jennifer (14 March 2016). "Harazin: Local band The Morbs embrace tight-knit music scene". The Daily Nebraskan. Archived from the original on 19 December 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  • The dictionary definition of morbs at Wiktionary
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