demon

noun

de·​mon ˈdē-mən 

variants or daemon

plural demons or daemons

1

a

: an evil spirit

angels and demons

b

: a source or agent of evil, harm, distress, or ruin

the demons of drug and alcohol addiction

confronting the demons of his childhood

2

usually daemon : an attendant (see attendant entry 2 sense 1) power or spirit : genius

3

usually daemon mythology : a supernatural being whose nature is intermediate between that of a god and that of a human being

4

: one that has exceptional enthusiasm, drive, or effectiveness

a demon for work

Doug, putting like a demon, had birdies on the third and sixth …

—Fred Tupper

5

daemon : a software program or process that runs in the background

A mailer daemon installed on an e-mail system can respond to a piece of incorrectly addressed e-mail by generating an automated message to the sender that the message was undeliverable.

—J. D. Biersdorfer

demonian

di-ˈmō-nē-ən 

adjective

Synonyms of demon

• ghost
• ghoul
• devil
• vampire
• nightmare

Examples of demon in a Sentence

only in rare cases is the ancient rite of exorcism performed to cast out a troublesome demon

a man who was finally able to conquer his demons and kick his drug habit

Recent Examples on the Web

As for The Exorcist, the role of Regan — a young girl possessed by a demon — went to Linda Blair, whose work on the film earned her an Oscar nomination at just 14 years old. —Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Dec. 2025

Linda Blair earned an Oscar nomination for the memorable child role in The Exorcist as Regan, a young girl possessed by a demon whose mother Chris (Ellen Burstyn) consults with Catholic priests on removing the entity. —Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 26 Dec. 2025

The Oregon product had some demons to exercise at Arrowhead Stadium on Thursday, after the Chiefs targeted him on a game-winning field goal block in Kansas City’s 16-14 win over the Broncos in November 2024. —Luca Evans, Denver Post, 25 Dec. 2025

Will’s Coming Out In maybe the most heartfelt moment of Season 5 so far, Will braved coming out as gay to not only his close friends but the entire ensemble that has been fighting demons by his side since the day he got taken. —Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 25 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, "evil spirit," borrowed from Late Latin daemōn "evil spirit, pagan deity, idol," going back to Latin, "supernatural being, spirit intermediate between humans and gods," borrowed from Greek daimon-, daímōn "superhuman power, variably evil or beneficent, intervening in human affairs, fate" (Homeric), "personal spirit, bringing luck or ill, that accompanies an individual," "spirit intermediate between humans and gods" (Plato), "evil spirit" (New Testament), probably from dai-, stem of daíomai, daíesthai "to divide, allocate" + -mōn, deverbal noun and adjective suffix — more at tide entry 1

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing demon

• demon drink
• like a demon
• speed demon
• the demon drink

Rhymes for demon

• beeman
• daemon
• leman
• niemann
• seaman
• seamen
• semen
• enginemen

Kids Definition

demon

noun

de·​mon

variants or daemon

ˈdē-mən 

1

: an evil spirit

2

usually daemon : an accompanying power or spirit : genius

3

usually daemon : demigod sense 1

4

: one that has a lot of energy

a demon for work

demonic

di-ˈmän-ik

adjective