daggone
A mild damn — annoyance or surprise without the hard cuss.
Also called doggone, dadgum, daggum.
Updated September 21, 2026
daggone pronunciation
/DAG-gone/
Meaning
Soft swear for a stuck bolt, a missed shot, or something that won't cooperate. Same job as doggone and dadgum. You can stick it before a noun ("that daggone truck") or spit it out alone when you're fed up.
How folks use it
- “Where'd I put that daggone flashlight?”
- “Well daggone, I didn't see you pull up.”
Origin and etymology
Variant of doggone, a 19th-century American euphemism for goddamn (often explained as from "dog on it"). Common in Southern talk alongside dadgum and dadblasted as porch-safe cussing.