DEVILING

Etymology 1

Verb

deviling

present participle of devil

Etymology 2

Noun

deviling (plural devilings)

(obsolete) A young devil.

Source: Wiktionary

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Dev"il*ing, n.

Definition: A young devil. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

DEVIL

Dev"il, n. Etym: [AS. deófol, deóful; akin to G. , Goth. diabaúlus; all fr. L. diabolus the devil, Gr. gal to fall. Cf. Diabolic.]

1. The Evil One; Satan, represented as the tempter and spiritual of mankind. [Jesus] being forty days tempted of the devil. Luke iv. 2. That old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world. Rev. xii. 9.

2. An evil spirit; a demon. A dumb man possessed with a devil. Matt. ix. 32.

3. A very wicked person; hence, any great evil. "That devil Glendower." "The devil drunkenness." Shak. Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil John vi. 70.

4. An expletive of surprise, vexation, or emphasis, or, ironically, of negation. [Low] The devil a puritan that he is, . . . but a timepleaser. Shak. The things, we know, are neither rich nor rare, But wonder how the devil they got there. Pope.

5. (Cookery)

Definition: A dish, as a bone with the meat, broiled and excessively peppered; a grill with Cayenne pepper. Men and women busy in baking, broiling, roasting oysters, and preparing devils on the gridiron. Sir W. Scott.

6. (Manuf.)

Definition: A machine for tearing or cutting rags, cotton, etc. Blue devils. See under Blue.

– Cartesian devil. See under Cartesian.

– Devil bird (Zoöl.), one of two or more South African drongo shrikes (Edolius retifer, and E. remifer), believed by the natives to be connected with sorcery.

– Devil may care, reckless, defiant of authority; -- used adjectively. Longfellow.

– Devil's apron (Bot.), the large kelp (Laminaria saccharina, and L. longicruris) of the Atlantic ocean, having a blackish, leathery expansion, shaped somewhat like an apron.

– Devil's coachhorse. (Zoöl.) (a) The black rove beetle (Ocypus olens). [Eng.] (b) A large, predacious, hemipterous insect (Prionotus cristatus); the wheel bug. [U.S.] -- Devil's darning-needle. (Zoöl.) See under Darn, v. t.

– Devil's fingers, Devil's hand (Zoöl.), the common British starfish (Asterias rubens); -- also applied to a sponge with stout branches. [Prov. Eng., Irish & Scot.] -- Devil's riding-horse (Zoöl.), the American mantis (Mantis Carolina).

– The Devil's tattoo, a drumming with the fingers or feet. "Jack played the Devil's tattoo on the door with his boot heels." F. Hardman (Blackw. Mag.).

– Devil worship, worship of the power of evil; -- still practiced by barbarians who believe that the good and evil forces of nature are of equal power.

– Printer's devil, the youngest apprentice in a printing office, who runs on errands, does dirty work (as washing the ink rollers and sweeping), etc. "Without fearing the printer's devil or the sheriff's officer." Macaulay.

– Tasmanian devil (Zoöl.), a very savage carnivorous marsupial of Tasmania (Dasyurus, or Diabolus, ursinus).

– To play devil with, to molest extremely; to ruin. [Low]

Dev"il, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Deviled or Devilled; p. pr. & vb. n. Deviling or Devilling.]

1. To make like a devil; to invest with the character of a devil.

2. To grill with Cayenne pepper; to season highly in cooking, as with pepper. A deviled leg of turkey. W. Irving. deviled egg a hard-boiled egg, sliced into halves and with the yolk removed and replaced with a paste, usually made from the yolk and mayonnaise, seasoned with salt and/or spices such as paprika.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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