DEVIL (devilled, devilling)
Dictionary entry overview: What does Devil mean?
• DEVIL (noun)
The noun DEVIL has 5 senses:
1. (Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell
2. one of the evil spirits of traditional Jewish and Christian belief
3. a word used in exclamations of confusion
4. a rowdy or mischievous person (usually a young man)
5. a cruel wicked and inhuman person
Familiarity information: DEVIL used as a noun is common.
• DEVIL (verb)
The verb DEVIL has 2 senses:
1. cause annoyance in; disturb, especially by minor irritations
2. coat or stuff with a spicy paste
Familiarity information: DEVIL used as a verb is rare.
Dictionary entry details
• DEVIL (noun)
Meaning:
(Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell
Classified under:
Nouns denoting people
Synonyms:
the Tempter; Satan; Prince of Darkness; Old Nick; Lucifer; Devil; Beelzebub
Instance hypernyms:
spiritual being; supernatural being (an incorporeal being believed to have powers to affect the course of human events)
Domain category:
faith; religion; religious belief (a strong belief in a supernatural power or powers that control human destiny)
Islam; Islamism; Mohammedanism; Muhammadanism; Muslimism (the monotheistic religious system of Muslims founded in Arabia in the 7th century and based on the teachings of Muhammad as laid down in the Koran)
Meaning:
One of the evil spirits of traditional Jewish and Christian belief
Classified under:
Nouns denoting people
Synonyms:
demon; daimon; daemon; devil; fiend
Hypernyms ("devil" is a kind of...):
evil spirit (a spirit tending to cause harm)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "devil"):
incubus (a male demon believed to lie on sleeping persons and to have sexual intercourse with sleeping women)
succuba; succubus (a female demon believed to have sexual intercourse with sleeping men)
dibbuk; dybbuk ((Jewish folklore) a demon that enters the body of a living person and controls that body's behavior)
Meaning:
A word used in exclamations of confusion
Classified under:
Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents
Synonyms:
dickens; deuce; devil
Context examples:
what the devil / the deuce with it / the dickens you say
Hypernyms ("devil" is a kind of...):
exclaiming; exclamation (an abrupt excited utterance)
Meaning:
A rowdy or mischievous person (usually a young man)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting people
Synonyms:
hellion; devil; heller
Context example:
he chased the young hellions out of his yard
Hypernyms ("devil" is a kind of...):
bad hat; mischief-maker; trouble maker; troublemaker; troubler (someone who deliberately stirs up trouble)
Meaning:
A cruel wicked and inhuman person
Classified under:
Nouns denoting people
Synonyms:
ogre; fiend; demon; monster; devil
Hypernyms ("devil" is a kind of...):
disagreeable person; unpleasant person (a person who is not pleasant or agreeable)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "devil"):
demoniac (someone who acts as if possessed by a demon)
• DEVIL (verb)
Meaning:
Cause annoyance in; disturb, especially by minor irritations
Classified under:
Verbs of feeling
Synonyms:
rile; nark; irritate; gravel; vex; devil; annoy; bother; nettle; rag; get to; chafe; get at
Context examples:
Mosquitoes buzzing in my ear really bothers me / It irritates me that she never closes the door after she leaves
Hypernyms (to "devil" is one way to...):
displease (give displeasure to)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "devil"):
beset; chevvy; chevy; chivvy; chivy; harass; harry; hassle; molest; plague; provoke (annoy continually or chronically)
fret (cause annoyance in)
ruffle (trouble or vex)
peeve (cause to be annoyed, irritated, or resentful)
eat into; fret; grate; rankle (gnaw into; make resentful or angry)
get; get under one's skin (irritate)
antagonise; antagonize (provoke the hostility of)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
Sentence example:
The performance is likely to devil Sue
Meaning:
Coat or stuff with a spicy paste
Classified under:
Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing
Context example:
devilled eggs
Hypernyms (to "devil" is one way to...):
cook; fix; make; prepare; ready (prepare for eating by applying heat)
Domain category:
cookery; cooking; preparation (the act of preparing something (as food) by the application of heat)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s something
Sentence example:
The chefs devil the vegetables
