Devil
Noun:
- An evil supernatural being; a demon: A powerful, malevolent spirit or force, often personified as the enemy of God and humanity in various religions.
- The supreme spirit of evil; Satan: In Judeo-Christian and Islamic belief, the chief adversary of God, the tempter of humankind, and the ruler of Hell.
- A wicked or cruel person: A person who is exceptionally evil, malicious, or cruel in character or actions.
- A mischievous or energetic person: A person, often young, who is playfully naughty, rowdy, or full of high spirits.
- A difficult or annoying thing: Something that is very troublesome, problematic, or causes great difficulty.
- Used as an intensifier in exclamations: A word used in expressions of confusion, surprise, or annoyance for emphasis.
Verb:
- To prepare food with spicy seasoning: To coat or stuff food, especially eggs or meat, with a highly seasoned mixture.
- To annoy or harass: To bother, irritate, or torment someone, often persistently or in a minor way.
Noun:
- The story featured a devil who tempted the hero with power. (The story featured an evil supernatural being who tempted the hero with power.)
- She can be a real devil when she doesn't get her way. (She can be a real wicked or cruel person when she doesn't get her way.)
- That little devil hid my keys again! (That little mischievous person hid my keys again!)
- Fixing this engine is the very devil. (Fixing this engine is a very difficult or annoying thing.)
- What the devil is going on here? (What in the world is going on here?)
Verb:
- For the party, we devilled the eggs with paprika and mustard. (For the party, we prepared the eggs with a spicy mixture of paprika and mustard.)
- The constant noise from the construction site really devils me. (The constant noise from the construction site really annoys me.)
"the devil": Used to refer to the concept of evil or misfortune personified.
- He blamed his bad luck on the devil. (He blamed his bad luck on the personification of evil.)
"a devil of a...": An idiom used to emphasize that something is extreme, either very good or, more commonly, very bad or difficult.
- We had a devil of a time finding the house in the dark. (We had an extremely difficult time finding the house in the dark.)
"give the devil his due": To acknowledge a good quality in a person who is otherwise disliked or considered bad.
- I don't like him, but give the devil his due, he's an excellent public speaker. (I don't like him, but to be fair, he's an excellent public speaker.)
Devilish (adj): Resembling or characteristic of a devil; wicked or mischievous.
- He had a devilish grin on his face. (He had a wicked or mischievous grin on his face.)
Devilry / Deviltry (n): Wicked or cruel behavior; mischievous conduct.
- The children were up to some devilry in the attic. (The children were engaged in some mischievous conduct in the attic.)
Devil-may-care (adj): Cheerful and reckless; not caring about the consequences.
- He has a devil-may-care attitude about money. (He has a reckless, unconcerned attitude about money.)
- Noun (evil being): Demon, fiend, Satan, Beelzebub.
- Noun (mischievous person): Rascal, imp, scamp, hellion.
- Verb (annoy): Irritate, bother, vex, harass, plague.
Devil for: To have a strong craving or enthusiasm for something.
- He's a devil for chocolate. (He has a strong craving for chocolate.)
Play the devil with: To cause serious harm or disruption to something.
- The sudden frost played the devil with the fruit crop. (The sudden frost caused serious harm to the fruit crop.)
Between the devil and the deep blue sea: Faced with two equally undesirable choices.
- If I pay the fine, I admit guilt; if I fight it, the legal fees will ruin me. I'm between the devil and the deep blue sea. (I am faced with two equally bad choices.)
Speak of the devil: Said when a person who has just been mentioned appears unexpectedly.
- "We were just talking about Sarah, and speak of the devil, here she is!" (We were just talking about Sarah, and as we mentioned her, she appears.)
The devil is in the details: The specifics of something are complex and likely to cause problems.
- The contract seems straightforward, but the devil is in the details. (The contract seems simple, but the specific terms are where problems may arise.)
Go to the devil: An expression of anger telling someone to go away or be ruined; also, to deteriorate or be ruined.
- He told his annoying neighbor to go to the devil. (He told his annoying neighbor to go away and be damned.)
- After the scandal, his reputation went to the devil. (After the scandal, his reputation was completely ruined.)
- a cruel wicked and inhuman person
- a rowdy or mischievous person (usually a young man)
- he chased the young hellions out of his yard
- a word used in exclamations of confusion
- what the devil
- the deuce with it
- the dickens you say
- an evil supernatural being
- (Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell
- coat or stuff with a spicy paste
- devilled eggs
- cause annoyance in; disturb, especially by minor irritations
- Mosquitoes buzzing in my ear really bothers me
- It irritates me that she never closes the door after she leaves