a piece of equipment or a mechanism designed for a special purpose or function
a scheme to trick or deceive
something, e.g. a figure of speech or a dramatic convention, designed to achieve a particular artistic effect
something elaborate or intricate in design
an emblematic design with a motto used as a heraldic bearing: compare charge2 (7)
a motto
leave somebody to their own devices
to leave somebody alone to do as they please
[Middle English devis, devise division, intention, from Old French from deviser to divide, regulate, tell, from Latin dividere: see divide1]