devil

noun

dev·il | \ ˈde-vᵊl

, dialectal ˈdi-\

Definition of devil

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 often capitalized : the personal supreme spirit of evil often represented in Christian belief as the tempter of humankind, the leader of all apostate angels, and the ruler of hell —usually used with the —often used as an interjection, an intensive, or a generalized term of abuse what the devil is this?the devil you say!

2 : an evil spirit : demon

3a : an extremely wicked person : fiend

b archaic : a great evil

4 : a person of notable energy, recklessness, and dashing spirit also : one who is mischievous those kids are little devils today

5 : fellow —usually used in the phrases poor devil, lucky devil

6a : something very trying or provoking having a devil of a time with this problem

b : severe criticism or rebuke : hell —used with the I'll probably catch the devil for this

c : the difficult, deceptive, or problematic part of something the devil is in the details

7 : dust devil

8 Christian Science : the opposite of Truth : a belief in sin, sickness, and death : evil, error

between the devil and the deep blue sea

: faced with two equally objectionable alternatives

devil to pay

: severe consequences —used with the there'll be the devil to pay if we're late

devil

verb

deviled or devilled; deviling or devilling\ ˈde-və-liŋ

, ˈdev-liŋ \

Definition of devil (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : to season highly deviled eggs

2 : tease, annoy

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about devil

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of devil in a Sentence

Noun

She is a tricky devil, so be careful. Those kids can be little devils sometimes. He's such a lucky devil that he'll probably win the lottery someday.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The devil is in the details, some which have yet to be worked out. — Laurel Rosenhall, The Mercury News, "California just passed a $215 billion budget. Here’s what’s between the lines.," 14 June 2019 If America is the land of the closed, coddled mind, Great Britain was the land of the permanently apologetic devil’s advocate. — Sahil Handa, National Review, "Reclaiming Britishness from the Brexit Debacle," 10 June 2019 But Signé also notes the devil will be in the detail of ongoing complicated negotiations for implementation. — Yinka Adegoke, Quartz Africa, "So we have an African free trade agreement. Now what?," 2 June 2019 From there, pilgrims will head to an area called Muzdalifa, picking up pebbles along the way for a symbolic stoning of the devil and a casting away of sins that takes place in the Mina valley for three days. — Omar Akour, Fox News, "Over 2 million Muslims begin annual hajj pilgrimage," 19 Aug. 2018 At the end of the most recent season, Sabrina's boyfriend, Nick Scratch sacrifices himself as a prison for the Dark Lord, heading off to hell to host the devil in his own body. — Carolyn Twersky, Seventeen, "Everything We Know About "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina" Season 3," 9 Apr. 2019 In a show this symbolic, the devil is in the details — and the lipstick. — Leah Prinzivalli, Allure, "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina," 5 Apr. 2019 And the beating had to be as hard as possible to drive the devil out. — Dorothy Rabinowitz, WSJ, "‘Ministry of Evil: The Twisted Cult of Tony Alamo’ Review: Hell on Earth," 21 Feb. 2019 Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski said U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions' use of a Bible scripture to defend the administration's immigration policy was akin to the devil. — Howard Cohen, miamiherald, "'Even the devil quoted scripture,' Miami archbishop says of Sessions' immigration stance," 20 June 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

They were served steak sandwiches, ham sandwiches, turkey sandwiches, deviled eggs, salads and fruit; local church groups baked pies, brownies and cookies. — Bob Greene, WSJ, "A Soldier Never Forgets North Platte," 22 July 2018 Over time the bar became a restaurant where regulars would return day after day for a table d'hôte menu that might include boiled beef, jambalaya and deviled eggs in spicy remoulade sauce. — Todd A. Price, NOLA.com, "Do you remember Maylie's? A lost New Orleans restaurant," 9 May 2018 The current menu includes samosas, curried Scotch egg, saag paneer pizza, chutney deviled eggs and peanut chicken tikka among its pub bites. — Greg Morago, Houston Chronicle, "Queen Vic Pub to shutter mid-July," 6 July 2018 Buffalo deviled eggs, with Frank’s Hot Sauce and crumbled blue cheese. — Ann Friedman, The Cut, "Not Everything Is a Side Hustle," 11 Jan. 2018 Top each deviled egg with a pickled shrimp and a sprig of fresh dill. — Carrie Purcell, Country Living, "Deviled Eggs with Old Bay Shrimp," 4 Mar. 2014 Her deviled egg taco with beet greens salsa verde in a beet and corn tortilla is rightfully famous. — Liz Biro, Indianapolis Star, "10 women who are absolutely killing it at Indianapolis restaurants," 7 Mar. 2018 Stray from the classic and try making bacon cheddar deviled eggs. — Katie Workman, Detroit Free Press, "Recipe: No one can resist the temptation of classic deviled eggs," 31 Mar. 2018 Bernie’s Lunch & Supper: Brunch specials include pimiento-cheese deviled eggs, Scotch egg in the hole, fried ham chop and chocolate pot de creme. — Grace Wong, chicagotribune.com, "50-plus Easter brunch spots in Chicago and suburbs," 20 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'devil.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.