Ellen in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, wonders about the origin of the exclamation jeezum pete! It’s a minced oath — that is, a way of avoiding saying “Jesus Christ!” most likely derived by combining it with St. Pete. There are dozens of similar euphemized exclamations, including gee whillikers, gee willikins, jumping jehosaphat, Judas Priest, jeepers, jiminy, jiminy crickets, jiminy christmas, and more. This is part of a complete episode.
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So I was reading a comic and saw “jeezum pete” and immediately thought, wait, is that how it’s said? I was pretty sure my family always said “jeezam peas,” so I had to google it, and the first thing that popped up was a reference to an episode where it was discussed, and somehow I missed it. I’m Jamaican, and that’s probably why I remember it as “jeezam pease.” Islanders love to add some flair wherever we can.