Etymologically
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devil

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈdev.əl/[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English devel, inherited from Old English dēofol (“devil, evil spirit”), earlier diobul,[2][3][4] borrowed from Ecclesiastical Latin diabolus,[2][3][5] from Ancient Greek διάβολος (diábolos, “the Devil; accuser, slanderer”),[2][3][6] an agent noun from διαβάλλειν (diabállein, “to slander, attack”), literally “to throw across”, from διά (diá, “across”) and βάλλειν (bállein, “to throw”).[2][3][5] In the Septuagint diábolos translated the Hebrew word for Satan.[7][6][2] The Latin also gave French diable and Italian diavolo,[3] and Gothic 𐌳𐌹𐌰𐌱𐌰𐌿𐌻𐌿𐍃 (diabaulus), from the Greek, is the source of German Teufel.[3][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Devil, Satan: before 800 in the OED and Barnhart, as diobul;[8][2] the plural dēofla, evil spirits, is in Beowulf about 725.[2]

Semantic evolution

Jerome reintroduced Satan in Latin Bibles; in the Vulgate diabolus and daemon were distinct, but devil and demon have merged in English and the other Germanic languages.[3] A false or heathen god is from about 1200, and a wicked person resembling a devil from the late 12th century.[3] The playful sense of a clever rogue is from about 1600,[3] and the errand boy in a printing house, the printer's devil, from the 1680s, perhaps also because they were often blackened by ink.[3][5] A junior who does work for a lawyer or writer is from 1864,[8][5] and a highly seasoned grilled dish is from the 18th century,[5] with the verb, to grill with hot condiments, from 1800.[8][4] Speak of the devil, said when someone appears just after being mentioned, is from the mid-17th century,[7] and the devil finds work for idle hands goes back to the letters of Saint Jerome.[7] The Scots shortened form is deil.[2]

Timeline

  • c. 725 – dēofla, evil spirits, in Beowulf.[2]
  • before 800 – diobul, the Devil.[8][2]
  • c. 1200 – a heathen god.[3]
  • c. 1600 – a clever rogue.[3]
  • 1680s – a printer's devil.[3]
  • 1800 – to grill with hot seasoning.[8]
  • 1864 – to act as a lawyer's devil.[8]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. (often the Devil) In Christianity, Judaism and Islam, the chief spirit of evil and enemy of God; Satan.
  2. A lesser evil spirit; a demon.
  3. A wicked, cruel or ill-tempered person.
  4. A person of a specified kind: lucky devil, poor devil.
  5. A daring, energetic or mischievous person.
  6. A printer's devil, or a junior who works for a lawyer or writer.

Verb

  1. To season food heavily, as with mustard or pepper: devilled eggs.
  2. To annoy or harass.
  3. To do routine work for a lawyer or writer.

Word family

  • devilish
  • devilment
  • devil-may-care
  • devil's advocate
  • printer's devil
  • diabolo
  • diablo
  • diabolic
  • diabolical
  • Satan
  • demon
  • deil
  • devilry

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b c d e f Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b c Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  8. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press