hubba hubba

An expression of appreciation. The phrase, along with the longer “hubba hubba ding ding” started during World War II, purportedly from a Chinese greeting “how-pu-how” that Air Force pilots learned from Chinese pilots trained at a Florida base. The phrase spread around the services, primarily due to comedian Bob Hope's radio broadcasts; Hope and sidekick Jerry Colonna used it frequently. The phrase was expanded to “Hubba hubba ding ding / I see some-thing” whenever a pretty girl passed by. Or when a couple was spied chatting romantically, “Hubba hubba ding ding / Think about a wedding ring.”