Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. (orig. US) a phr. used to indicate one’s incomprehension.

1901		H. Lawson ‘His Brother’s Keeper’ in Roderick (1972) 525: What the — do you mean by coming into my bar and interfering with he, Who the — are you anyway?
1939		V. Davis Gentlemen of the Broad Arrows 55: ‘What the — is this?’ exclaimed the astonished warder.
1942		H. Miller Roofs of Paris (1983) 46: What the fuck’s wrong with you bozos, anyway?
1955		E. Hunter Blackboard Jungle 175: So wat the fuck you think?
a.1963		‘The Fall’ in D. Wepman et al. Life (1976) 87: I heard a thunder that the door shook under / And wondered what the fuck it could be.
1970		E. Tidyman Shaft 197: He could remember the ten thousand dollars [...] What the fuck good was it?
1973		D. Goines Street Players 215: Woman, what the fuck are you doing here?
1988		Viz Oct.–Nov. 32: What the fuck are you playing at?
1993		Tarantino & Avery Pulp Fiction [film script] 88: What the fuck do you think I’m doing?!
1994		P. Quigley Borderland 180: What the blue fuck did you mean?
1999		Guardian Weekend 12 June 23: Whoaaah? What the fuck is that?
2009		J. Joso Soothing Music for Stray Cats 11: And just what the fuck was going through Jim’s stupid bastard head?
2010		A. Steinberg Running the Books 185: Fuck is everyone crying about?
2015		P. Doyle (con. 1969-1973) Big Whatever 23: The bikey [...] clocked the crazy tableau and said, ‘The fuck’s this?’.
2017		A. Parks Bloody January 82: ‘Fuck’s up with you, McCoy?’.
2020		G. Krauze What They Was 5: We’re talking to Tyrell like whatdafuck, man [...] that was a mad ting.
2023		Rayman & Blau Riker’s 37: I said to the guy, what the fuck are you doing with this?
2023		F. Bill Back to the Dirt 66: ‘Shit you looking at, cracker-ass motherfucker?’.

2. in attrib. use of sense 1.

2010

Codella and Bennett Alphaville (2011) 234: It is so far from what Gio expects to hear that he breaks character with a ‘what the fuck?’ look at me.