devilish
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English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Middle English develissh, develyssh, equivalent to devil + -ish. Cognate with Saterland Frisian düvelsk, düüwelsk (“devilish”), West Frisian duvelsk (“devilish”), Dutch duivels (“devilish”), German Low German düvelsk (“devilish”), German teuflisch (“devilish”), Danish djævelsk (“devilish”), Swedish djävulsk (“devilish”), Norwegian djevelsk (“devilish”).
Pronunciation[edit]
Adjective[edit]
devilish (comparative more devilish, superlative most devilish)
- Resembling a devil.
- c. 1587–1588, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire, London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act II, scene vi:
- Let vs put on our meet incountering mindes,
And in deteſting ſuch a diueliſh Thiefe,
In loue of honor and defence of right
Be arm’d againſt the hate of ſuch a foe,
Whether from earth, or hell, or heauen he grow.
- Characteristic of a devil.
- a devilish grin
- 1818, [Mary Shelley], chapter III, in Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. […], volume III, London: […] [Macdonald and Son] for Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones, →OCLC, pages 43–44:
- The wretch saw me destroy the creature on whose future existence he depended for happiness, and with a howl of devilish despair and revenge, withdrew.
- (informal) Extreme, excessive.
- A devilish effort yielded a devilish success.
Synonyms[edit]
- (resembling a devil): atrocious, demoniac, deuced, diabolic, evil, fiendish, ghoulish, malicious, mischievous, nefarious, ogreish, reprobate, unhallowed, wicked
- (characteristic of a devil): demonic, diabolic, diabolical, hellish, infernal, satanic, satanical
- (extreme): excessive, extreme.
Derived terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
resembling or characteristic of a devil
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extreme, excessive
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
Adverb[edit]
devilish (comparative more devilish, superlative most devilish)
- (informal, dated) Devilishly; very; exceedingly.
- It was devilish hot outside today.
Translations[edit]
devilishly — see devilishly
Categories:
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms suffixed with -ish
- English 3-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio links
- English lemmas
- English adjectives
- English terms with quotations
- English terms with usage examples
- English informal terms
- English adverbs
- English dated terms