diabolical

[ dahy-uh-bol-i-kuhl ]
See synonyms for: diabolicaldiabolically on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. having the qualities of a devil; devilish; fiendish; outrageously wicked: a diabolical plot.

  2. pertaining to or actuated by a devil.

Origin of diabolical

1
First recorded in 1500–10; from Late Latin diabolicus (see diabolic) + -al1
  • Also di·a·bol·i·c [dahy-uh-bol-ik] /ˌdaɪ əˈbɒl ɪk/ .

Other words from diabolical

  • di·a·bol·i·cal·ly, adverb
  • di·a·bol·i·cal·ness, noun
  • hy·per·di·a·bol·i·cal, adjective
  • hy·per·di·a·bol·i·cal·ly, adverb
  • hy·per·di·a·bol·i·cal·ness, noun
  • non·di·a·bol·i·cal, adjective
  • non·di·a·bol·i·cal·ly, adverb
  • non·di·a·bol·i·cal·ness, noun
  • su·per·di·a·bol·i·cal, adjective
  • su·per·di·a·bol·i·cal·ly, adverb
  • su·per·di·a·bol·i·cal·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use diabolical in a sentence

  • Another of the myths common in this country about Japan is that her people are all brilliantly, almost diabolically, clever.

    A Journal from Japan | Marie Carmichael Stopes
  • And Langholm grinned with set teeth as he turned back to this passage: he would be diabolically safe.

    The Shadow of the Rope | E. W. Hornung
  • A mechanism so cleverly fashioned by the genius of man that it stood diabolically upon the threshhold of humanity!

British Dictionary definitions for diabolical

diabolical

/ (ˌdaɪəˈbɒlɪkəl) /


adjectiveinformal
  1. excruciatingly bad; outrageous

  2. (intensifier): a diabolical liberty

Derived forms of diabolical

  • diabolically, adverb
  • diabolicalness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012