demonic

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin daemonicus (“of or belonging to a demon or evil spirit”),^[2][3][4] a word Klein and Merriam-Webster place in Late Latin and the OED first finds in Tertullian in the late 2nd century.^[5][4][2] The Latin adjective is from Ancient Greek δαιμονικός (daimonikós, “possessed by a demon; of a demon”),^[2][5][6] formed from δαίμων (daímōn), the source of demon, and the suffix -ικός (-ikós), the source of -ic.^[2][4][7] The OED compares French démonique, recorded in Middle French in 1422 and now rare, and the older English adjectives demonical and demoniac;^[2] demonical goes back to the late 15th century.^[3] In Old English the Latin daemonicus was glossed with Old English dēofolsēoc (“devil-sick, possessed by a devil”).^[3][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of or relating to demons, of the nature of a demon, or caused by demonic possession: 1642, in the Papists Petition in England.^[2] Etymonline dates the word to the 1660s,^[3] Merriam-Webster to 1662,^[4] and Dictionary.com to 1655–65.^[7]

Semantic evolution

From the literal sense, belonging to or possessed by a demon, the word came by 1796 to describe anything resembling a demon: devilish, evil, or crazed and frenzied.^[2][9] In the same year it took on a different, positive sense, usually spelt daemonic: relating to an inner or guiding spirit, especially as the source of creative genius.^[2][9][4] The OED says this sense first followed German dämonisch, which had it from the late 18th century.^[2] With the, it has been used since 1785 for the demonic nature or for demons collectively.^[2]

Timeline

• 1642 – of or relating to demons; possessed by a demon.^[2]
• 1785 – the demonic, demonic nature; demons collectively.^[2]
• 1796 – devilish, malevolent; frenzied.^[2]
• 1796 – usually daemonic: inspired by an inner spirit or genius.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Of, relating to or like a demon; fiendish or devilish: a demonic grin.^[10][2][9]
2. Possessed or driven by a demon, or seeming so; frenzied: He worked with a demonic energy through the night.^[10][4][2]
3. Usually spelt daemonic: inspired by an inner spirit or genius; having extraordinary creative power.^[4][2][9]

Word family

• demonically

Related words

• demon
• demoniac
• demonical
• daemon
• pandemonium

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
6. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
7. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
8. ^ Bosworth, Joseph; Toller, T. Northcote (1898), An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press; Toller, T. Northcote (1921), Supplement
9. ^ a b c d Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
10. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins