Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun Acting as a ‘devil’ or office hack; literary or legal hack-work: as, a young barrister engaged in deviling.
- noun A little devil; a young devil.
- noun A fretful, troublesome woman.
- noun The swift, Cypselus apus. Also called
devil-screecher . Also writtendevelin .
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun obsolete A young devil.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun obsolete A
young devil .
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Aside from his songs, I had heard the wiry little man say less than three dozen words throughout the course of our acquaintanceship, and the thought of his "deviling" anyone was incongruous.
Sick Cycle Carousel 2010
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On these occasions Luck Cullison was usually "deviling" him, the only diversion that had been open to the ranchman for some days past.
Crooked Trails and Straight William MacLeod Raine 1912
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'deviling' for her father were the only incidents in her even life.
Peg O' My Heart J. Hartley Manners 1899
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Packard is mysterious man, and deviling through the mysteries surrounding him is one of the main draws of this story.
Review: Mind Games by Carolyn Crane Donna 2010
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Maybe they were deviling up the engine as well for that purpose.
A Bob Lee Swagger eBook Boxed Set Stephen Hunter 2009
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Maybe they were deviling up the engine as well for that purpose.
A Bob Lee Swagger eBook Boxed Set Stephen Hunter 2009
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Maybe they were deviling up the engine as well for that purpose.
A Bob Lee Swagger eBook Boxed Set Stephen Hunter 2009
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Finally, to “deviling” the eggs: removing the yolks and mashing them up with seasoning and mayonnaise.
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I think it's only a matter of time -- probably moments -- before they rescind the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy, recognizing that our community is filled with dare-deviling, hard-bodied potential recruits, many of whom have a fetish for uniforms.
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It's been proven by psychological research: Psychopaths actually get a buzz off of be-deviling those under them in power!
vanishedone commented on the word deviling
'I began to write up the Devil and his Imps, placing at first no limit on their number. I had no sooner thrown open the doors than the air was darkend by a grisly flight of black-wingd demons, and the grounds was coverd by a trooping host of uncanny creatures of vague unseemly forms and unassorted sizes. Devils, Devilets, Devilings, Dablets, and other Imps...'
Charles P.G. Scott, 'The Devil and His Imps: An Etymological Inquisition'
January 12, 2009