"holy mackerel" meaning in English

{
  "etymology_text": "Recorded from 1803 with uncertain origin, but possibly a euphemism for Holy Mary, with Mackerel being a nickname for Catholics because they ate the fish on Fridays. Another suggested explanation is the practice of selling mackerel on Sundays in the seventeenth century (because its quality deteriorates rapidly), so it was known as holy fish.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "holy mackerel",
      "name": "en-interj"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "intj",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
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          "source": "w"
        },
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          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with language name categories using raw markup",
            "Entry maintenance"
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          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English euphemisms",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "name": "English minced oaths",
          "parents": [
            "Minced oaths",
            "Euphemisms",
            "Figures of speech",
            "Rhetoric",
            "Language",
            "Communication",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
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          "source": "w"
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          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
          "parents": [
            "Terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
            "Entry maintenance"
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          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1932, Delos W. Lovelace, King Kong, published 1965, page 48",
          "text": "‘Holy mackerel!’ he whispered. ‘Englehorn! Driscoll! Get a look at this thing.’",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1951, Marguerite Wallace Kennedy, chapter 3, in My Home on the Range",
          "text": "Holy Mackerel! Here Comes the Bride!\"",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1956, Ian Fleming, Diamonds are Forever, published 1965, page 163",
          "text": "Holy mackerel! Just any old dumb hag who can cook and lie on her back?",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "An expression of surprise."
      ],
      "id": "en-holy_mackerel-en-intj-x~m0pbVV",
      "links": [
        [
          "humorous",
          "humorous"
        ],
        [
          "surprise",
          "surprise"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic, humorous or euphemistic) An expression of surprise."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "wow"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "euphemistic",
        "humorous",
        "idiomatic"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "oc",
          "lang": "Occitan",
          "sense": "expression of surprise",
          "word": "macarèl"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "en-au-holy mackerel.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/b/b7/En-au-holy_mackerel.ogg/En-au-holy_mackerel.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/En-au-holy_mackerel.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "word": "holy mackerel"
}

{
  "etymology_text": "Recorded from 1803 with uncertain origin, but possibly a euphemism for Holy Mary, with Mackerel being a nickname for Catholics because they ate the fish on Fridays. Another suggested explanation is the practice of selling mackerel on Sundays in the seventeenth century (because its quality deteriorates rapidly), so it was known as holy fish.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "holy mackerel",
      "name": "en-interj"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "intj",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
        "English euphemisms",
        "English humorous terms",
        "English idioms",
        "English interjections",
        "English lemmas",
        "English minced oaths",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English terms with audio links",
        "English terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1932, Delos W. Lovelace, King Kong, published 1965, page 48",
          "text": "‘Holy mackerel!’ he whispered. ‘Englehorn! Driscoll! Get a look at this thing.’",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1951, Marguerite Wallace Kennedy, chapter 3, in My Home on the Range",
          "text": "Holy Mackerel! Here Comes the Bride!\"",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1956, Ian Fleming, Diamonds are Forever, published 1965, page 163",
          "text": "Holy mackerel! Just any old dumb hag who can cook and lie on her back?",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "An expression of surprise."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "humorous",
          "humorous"
        ],
        [
          "surprise",
          "surprise"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic, humorous or euphemistic) An expression of surprise."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "euphemistic",
        "humorous",
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "en-au-holy mackerel.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/b/b7/En-au-holy_mackerel.ogg/En-au-holy_mackerel.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/En-au-holy_mackerel.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "wow"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "oc",
      "lang": "Occitan",
      "sense": "expression of surprise",
      "word": "macarèl"
    }
  ],
  "word": "holy mackerel"
}