devil
Noun pluraldevils
Pluraldevils
Formsdevils
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- 4A made-up red figure with horns, a tail, and a pitchfork, used to scare children away from bad behavior.
Like a Halloween costume of a red monster with horns and a tail.
The child drew a devil with bright red horns and a long forked tail.
On the cereal box, a grinning devil waved its pitchfork at the kids.
Oppositeangel
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- 5
- 6A small, fierce black animal from Tasmania, also called the Tasmanian devil.
Out in the scrub, a devil tore into a dead wallaby.
The devil bared its teeth and let out a loud screech.
- 7The part of your mind that pushes you to do wrong, unlike the good side.
Like a tiny voice telling you to break the rules.
A little devil on his shoulder urged him to keep the extra change.
She ignored the devil whispering that no one would ever find out.
Oppositeangel, conscience
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- 8
- 9A small spinning column of wind that lifts dust and dirt into the air, also called a dust devil.
Out on the dry flats, a devil of dust spun past us.
A devil of dust rose and danced across the empty parking lot.
Similarwhirlwind
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Less common meanings
- 10To make a dish by mixing boiled egg yolks with spices and putting them back into the egg whites.
She deviled a dozen eggs for the church picnic.
We always devil eggs for the holiday table.
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- 13To chop up cooked meat very finely and mix it with hot spices.
Like mashing meat into a spicy paste for sandwiches.
Grandma would devil the leftover ham for sandwiches.
They devil chicken with mustard and pepper for the picnic.
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- 15A spicy dish of broiled meat or bones covered with lots of hot pepper.
Like very spicy grilled meat that burns your tongue.
The cook served a devil so spicy it made everyone's eyes water.
We ordered a devil at the pub, all blackened bones and hot pepper.
Note
- 16To give someone or something the bad, evil nature of a devil.
Like drawing horns and a tail on someone to make them look evil.
The author tried to devil his villain with cruel, fiery traits.
Folktales often devil the wolf, making it pure evil.
Similardemonize
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- 17A young helper who did small jobs in an old-time print shop.
Like an errand boy who helps out and learns the job.
The devil swept the floor and fetched ink for the printers.
As a boy he worked as a devil in the local print shop.
Similarapprentice, assistant
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- 18To work for a lawyer or writer for no pay and no credit.
Like being an unpaid helper who does the work while someone else gets the credit.
He had to devil for years before earning his own clients.
Young lawyers often devil under a senior barrister.
Similarintern
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- 19To write something that another person will publish under their own name.
Like writing a friend's homework while they put their name on it.
He used to devil entire chapters for a busy author.
She would devil speeches for politicians who took the credit.
Similarghostwrite, ghost
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- 20A cycling race where the last rider is removed again and again until one remains.
Like musical chairs on bikes: the last one each round is out.
She won the devil after outlasting every other rider.
In the devil, you have to avoid being last on every lap.
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- 21A ghost said to cause trouble and mistakes in a printing shop.
Like an invisible troublemaker who messes things up when no one is watching.
The printers joked that a devil had jumbled all the letters overnight.
Whenever a page came out wrong, they blamed the devil in the press room.
Note
- 22A piece of land that is empty and grows nothing useful.
Like a patch of dirt where nothing ever grows.
Nothing would grow on that devil behind the farm.
They left the rocky devil at the edge of the field alone.
Similarwasteland
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- 23A machine that tears old cloth and rags into loose fibers.
Like a giant shredder that turns old cloth into fluff.
The devil chewed through piles of old rags all day.
A worker fed cloth into the devil to make fresh fiber.
Similarshredder
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- 24To tear old cloth into loose threads so it can be used again.
Like pulling an old sweater apart into a pile of loose wool.
Workers devil old wool coats to make new yarn.
They devil torn blankets back into usable thread.
Similarshred
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- 25Short form of devil seam. It means the tricky seam between the keel and the first plank on a wooden boat.
The caulker forced oakum deep into the devil along the keel.
Water leaked in through the devil where the planks met the keel.
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Showing meanings only.
Practice
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Origin
It comes from Old English dēofol, which came from Latin diabolus and originally from Greek diábolos, meaning "slanderer" or "false accuser."