n. & int.
--n.
1. virtue; excellence, esp. moral.
2 kindness, generosity (had the goodness to wait).
3 what is good or beneficial in a thing (vegetables with all the goodness boiled out).
--int. (as a substitution for 'God') expressing surprise, anger, etc. (goodness me!; goodness knows; for goodness' sake!).
Etymology: OE godnes (as GOOD, -NESS)