(sometimes initial capital letter)the supreme spirit of evil; Satan.
a subordinate evil spirit at enmity with God, and having power to afflict humans both with bodily disease and with spiritual corruption.
an atrociously wicked, cruel, or ill-tempered person.
a person who is very clever, energetic, reckless, or mischievous.
a person, usually one in unfortunate or pitiable circumstances: The poor devil kept losing jobs through no fault of his own.
Also called printer's devil. Printing. a young worker below the level of apprentice in a printing office.
any of various mechanical devices, as a machine for tearing rags, a machine for manufacturing wooden screws, etc.
Nautical. (in deck or hull planking) any of various seams difficult to caulk because of form or position.
any of various portable furnaces or braziers used in construction and foundry work.
the devil,(used as an emphatic expletive or mild oath to express disgust, anger, astonishment, negation, etc.): What the devil do you mean by that?
verb (used with object),dev·iled,dev·il·ing or (especially British) dev·illed,dev·il·ling.
to annoy; harass; pester: to devil Mom and Dad for a new car.
to tear (rags, cloth, etc.) with a devil.
Cooking. to prepare (food, usually minced) with hot or savory seasoning: to devil eggs.
Idioms for devil
between the devil and the deep (blue) sea, between two undesirable alternatives; in an unpleasant dilemma.
devil of a, extremely difficult or annoying; hellish: I had a devil of a time getting home through the snow.
give the devil his due, to give deserved credit even to a person one dislikes: To give the devil his due, you must admit that she is an excellent psychologist.
go to the devil,
to fail completely; lose all hope or chance of succeeding.
let the devil take the hindmost, to leave the least able or fortunate persons to suffer adverse consequences; leave behind or to one's fate: They ran from the pursuing mob and let the devil take the hindmost.
play the devil with, to ruin completely; spoil: The financial crisis played the devil with our investment plans.
raise the devil,
to cause a commotion or disturbance.
to celebrate wildly; revel.
to make an emphatic protest or take drastic measures.
the devil to pay, trouble to be faced; mischief in the offing: If conditions don't improve, there will be the devil to pay.
Origin of devil
before 900; Middle English devel,Old English dēofol<Late Latin diabolus<Greek diábolos Satan (Septuagint, NT), literally, slanderer (noun), slanderous (adj.), verbid of diabállein to assault someone's character, literally, to throw across, equivalent to dia-dia- + bállein to throw
OTHER WORDS FROM devil
outdevil,verb (used with object),out·dev·iled,out·dev·il·ing or (especially British) out·dev·illed,out·dev·il·ling.sub·dev·il,nounun·der·dev·il,noun
This, he learned by watching May Bowen; however, to his chagrin, he never did get his grandmother's deviled crab recipe.
A Briny, South Carolina Oyster Shack|Jane & Michael Stern|March 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Deviled eggs are a cocktail-party staple and are magnetic in their ability to attract even abstemious guests.
What to Eat: Classic Hors d'Oeuvres, Revisited|Cookstr.com|November 3, 2009|DAILY BEAST
Mizzi retired with a heightened color, and he sat down with satisfaction to the cricket reports and deviled kidneys.
The Gay Adventure|Richard Bird
There was a cold chicken on the sideboard, deviled chicken on the table, and a trio of boiled eggs, and a dish of scrambled eggs.
Love Among the Chickens|P. G. Wodehouse
The yolks of the eggs may be removed and deviled or highly seasoned.
The Khaki Kook Book|Mary Kennedy Core
One wouldn't mind standing a rise in broiled lobsters or deviled crabs.
Strictly Business|O. Henry
But she was on Jake; she deviled us into letting her take him.
Skyrider|B. M. Bower
British Dictionary definitions for devil
devil
/ (ˈdɛvəl) /
noun
theol(often capital)the chief spirit of evil and enemy of God, often represented as the ruler of hell and often depicted as a human figure with horns, cloven hoofs, and tail
theolone of the subordinate evil spirits of traditional Jewish and Christian belief
a person or animal regarded as cruel, wicked, or ill-natured
a person or animal regarded as unfortunate or wretchedthat poor devil was ill for months
a person or animal regarded as clever, daring, mischievous, or energetic
informalsomething difficult or annoying
Christian Sciencethe opposite of truth; an error, lie, or false belief in sin, sickness, and death
(in Malaysia) a ghost
a portable furnace or brazier, esp one used in road-making or one used by plumbersCompare salamander (def. 7)
any of various mechanical devices, usually with teeth, such as a machine for making wooden screws or a rag-tearing machine
See printer's devil
law(in England) a junior barrister who does work for another in order to gain experience, usually for a half fee
meteorola small whirlwind in arid areas that raises dust or sand in a column
between the devil and the deep blue seabetween equally undesirable alternatives
devil ofinformal(intensifier)a devil of a fine horse
give the devil his dueto acknowledge the talent or the success of an opponent or unpleasant person
go to the devil
to fail or become dissipated
(interjection)used to express annoyance with the person causing it
like the devilwith great speed, determination, etc
play the devil withinformalto make much worse; upset considerablythe damp plays the devil with my rheumatism
raise the devil
to cause a commotion
to make a great protest
talk of the devil!orspeak of the devil!(interjection)used when an absent person who has been the subject of conversation appears
the devil!(intensifier :)
used in such phrases as what the devil, where the devil, etc
an exclamation of anger, surprise, disgust, etc
the devil's owna very difficult or problematic (thing)
the devil take the hindmostorlet the devil take the hindmostlook after oneself and leave others to their fate
the devil to payproblems or trouble to be faced as a consequence of an action
the very devilsomething very difficult or awkward
verb-ils, -illingor-illedorUS-ils, -ilingor-iled
(tr)to prepare (esp meat, poultry, or fish) by coating with a highly flavoured spiced paste or mixture of condiments before cooking
(tr)to tear (rags) with a devil
(intr)to serve as a printer's devil
(intr)mainlyBritishto do hackwork, esp for a lawyer or author; perform arduous tasks, often without pay or recognition of one's services
(tr)USinformalto harass, vex, torment, etc
Word Origin for devil
Old English dēofol, from Latin diabolus, from Greek diabolos enemy, accuser, slanderer, from diaballein, literally: to throw across, hence, to slander