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- From the verb devil: (⇒ conjugate)
- deviled is: ⓘClick the infinitive to see all available inflections
- v past (US)
- v past p (US)
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026dev•il /ˈdɛvəl/USA pronunciation
n. [countable]
- Religion
- [proper noun;
the + ~;
sometimes: Devil] the supreme spirit of evil;
Satan:The preacher warned that the Devil would take their souls.
- an evil spirit that is an enemy of God.
- a wicked, cruel person:The dictator was a devil to his people.
- a clever or mischievous person:Those little devils poured a bucket of water on my head.
- an unlucky person:That poor devil never knew what hit him.
- the devil, (used to show mild anger, amazement, or emotion in questions):What the devil do you mean?
Idioms
- Idioms a or the devil of a, [before a noun] extremely bad, terrible, difficult, etc.:We had the devil of a time changing the spark plugs.
- Idioms the devil to pay, trouble to be faced later;
repercussions:There'll be the devil to pay for your misbehavior.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026dev•il
(dev′əl),USA pronunciation n., v., -iled, -il•ing or (esp. Brit.) -illed, -il•ling. n.
- Religion[Theol.]
- (sometimes cap.) 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.
- PrintingAlso called printer's devil. a young worker below the level of apprentice in a printing office.
- Mechanical Engineeringany of various mechanical devices, as a machine for tearing rags, a machine for manufacturing wooden screws, etc.
- Nautical, Naval Terms(in deck or hull planking) any of various seams difficult to caulk because of form or position.
- Metallurgyany of various portable furnaces or braziers used in construction and foundry work.
- Idioms between the devil and the deep (blue) sea, between two undesirable alternatives;
in an unpleasant dilemma.
- Idioms devil of a, extremely difficult or annoying;
hellish:I had a devil of a time getting home through the snow.
- Idioms 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.
- Idioms go to the devil:
- to fail completely;
lose all hope or chance of succeeding.
- to become depraved.
- (an expletive expressing annoyance, disgust, impatience, etc.)
- Idioms 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.
- Idioms play the devil with, to ruin completely;
spoil:The financial crisis played the devil with our investment plans.
- Idioms raise the devil:
- to cause a commotion or disturbance.
- to celebrate wildly;
revel.
- to make an emphatic protest or take drastic measures.
- 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?
- Idioms the devil to pay, trouble to be faced;
mischief in the offing:If conditions don't improve, there will be the devil to pay.
v.t.
- to annoy;
harass;
pester:to devil Mom and Dad for a new car.
- to tear (rags, cloth, etc.) with a devil.
- Food[Cookery.]to prepare (food, usually minced) with hot or savory seasoning:to devil eggs.
- Greek diábolos Satan (Septuagint, NT), literally, slanderer (noun, nominal), slanderous (adjective, adjectival), verbid of diabállein to assault someone's character, literally, to throw across, equivalent. to dia- dia- + bállein to throw
- Late Latin diabolus
- Middle English devel, Old English dēofol bef. 900
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
devil /ˈdɛvəl/ n - (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
- one 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 wretched
- a person or animal regarded as clever, daring, mischievous, or energetic
- informal something difficult or annoying
- the 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 plumbers
- 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
- (in England) a junior barrister who does work for another in order to gain experience, usually for a half fee
- a small whirlwind in arid areas that raises dust or sand in a column
- between the devil and the deep blue sea ⇒ between equally undesirable alternatives
- devil of ⇒ informal (intensifier): a devil of a fine horse
- give the devil his due ⇒ to 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
- talk of the devil!, speak 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 take the hindmost, let the devil take the hindmost ⇒ look after oneself and leave others to their fate
- the devil to pay ⇒ problems or trouble to be faced as a consequence of an action
vb ( -vils, -villing, -villed) ( US -vils, -viling, -viled)- (transitive) to prepare (esp meat, poultry, or fish) by coating with a highly flavoured spiced paste or mixture of condiments before cooking
- (transitive) to tear (rags) with a devil
- (intransitive) to serve as a printer's devil
- (intransitive) chiefly Brit to do hackwork, esp for a lawyer or author; perform arduous tasks, often without pay or recognition of one's services
- (transitive) US informal to harass, vex, torment, etc
Etymology: Old English dēofol, from Latin diabolus, from Greek diabolos enemy, accuser, slanderer, from diaballein, literally: to throw across, hence, to slander
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