dev·il / ˈdevəl/ • n. 1. (usu. the Devil) (in Christian and Jewish belief) the chief evil spirit; Satan. ∎  an evil spirit; a demon. ∎  a very wicked or cruel person: they prefer voting for devils than for decent men. ∎  a mischievously clever or self-willed person: the cunning old devil is up to something. ∎  inf. a person with specified characteristics: the poor devil | a lucky devil. ∎  (the devil) fighting spirit; wildness: he was dangerous when the devil was in him. ∎  (the devil) a thing that is very difficult or awkward to do or deal with: it's going to be the very devil to disentangle.2. (the devil) expressing surprise or annoyance in various questions or exclamations: “Where the devil is he?”3. an instrument or machine, esp. one fitted with sharp teeth or spikes, used for tearing or other destructive work.4. inf., dated a junior assistant of a lawyer or other professional. See also printer's devil. • v. (dev·iled, dev·il·ing; Brit. dev·illed, dev·il·ling) 1. [intr.] inf., dated act as a junior assistant for a lawyer or other professional.2. [tr.] harass or worry (someone): he was deviled by a new-found fear.PHRASES: between the devil and the deep (blue) sea caught in a dilemma.devil a —— archaic not even one or any: the devil a man of you stirred himself over it.devil-may-care cheerful and reckless: lighthearted, devil-may-care young pilots.a devil of a —— inf. used to emphasize great size or degree: we are in a devil of a mess here.the devil is in the details the details of a matter are its most problematic aspect.the devil to pay serious trouble to be dealt with: there was the devil to pay when we got home.the devil's own —— inf. used to emphasize the difficulty or seriousness of something: he was in the devil's own hurry.go to the devil1. said in angry rejection or condemnation of someone.2. fall into moral depravity: he must go to the devil in his own way.like the devil with great speed or energy: he drove like the devil.play the devil with have a damaging or disruptive effect on: this brandy plays the devil with one's emotions!speak (or talk) of the devil said when a person appears just after being mentioned.ORIGIN: Old English dēofol (related to Dutch duivel and German Teufel), via late Latin from Greek diabolos ‘accuser, slanderer’ (used in the Septuagint to translate Hebrew śạ̄tān ‘Satan’), from diaballein ‘to slander,’ from dia ‘across’ + ballein ‘to throw.’