Yikes Meaning. Collins English Dictionary - Complete. Information and translations of yikes in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions.
A term coopted by a prudish segment of zoomers and millenials to express condescending disapproval. Dictionary of the English Language Fifth Edition. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
The expression dates back to the 1940s and has grown from a fringe slang term to a common interjection.
Attested from mid-20th c perhaps derived from yoicks a hunting call used to urge hounds after a fox which is attested from 17651775 that also is sometimes used as an exclamation of excitement or triumph. Used to show that you are worried surprised or shocked. The expression dates back to the 1940s and has grown from a fringe slang term to a common interjection. Origin unknown American Heritage.