carry me out!
Preserved but no longer current.
An exclamation of pretended astonishment on hearing news too good to be true, or a story too marvellous to be believed. Sometimes varied by "Let me die," i.e., I can’t survive that. Profanely derived from the Nunc dimittis (Luke xi. 29). The Irish say, "CARRY ME OUT, and bury me decently."
Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Historical definition reproduced from Hotten’s The Slang Dictionary (1874, public domain; Project Gutenberg #42108, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “carry me out!” mean?
An exclamation of pretended astonishment on hearing news too good to be true, or a story too marvellous to be believed. Sometimes varied by "Let me die," i.e., I can’t survive that. Profanely derived from the Nunc dimittis (Luke xi. 29). The Irish say, "CARRY ME OUT, and bury me decently."
Is “carry me out!” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.