Meaning
An emphatic but softened way to ask what, who, where, or how in the world. Dated, comic, and mildly emphatic Regional use: United States and Canada.
Origin
Sam Hill is a North American euphemism for hell or the devil, common enough by an 1830 Rhode Island newspaper joke to require explanation. It most likely remodels hell as a harmless personal name, comparable with Old Nick or Scratch. A proposed connection to the demon Samiel in an opera first staged in America in 1825 is possible by date but less direct and unproven.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- how in Sam Hill
- like Sam Hill
- what the Sam Hill
- who in Sam Hill
Usage Examples
- What in Sam Hill is making that noise inside the chimney?
- How in Sam Hill did the wheelbarrow end up on the roof?