Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Showing results for Beelzebub. Search instead for beelzebubs.
Synonyms

Beelzebub

American  
[bee-el-zuh-buhb, beel-zuh-] / biˈɛl zəˌbʌb, ˈbil zə- /

noun

  1. the chief devil; Satan.

  2. a devil.

  3. (in Milton'sParadise Lost ) one of the fallen angels, second only to Satan.

Beelzebub British  
/ bɪˈɛlzɪˌbʌb /

noun

  1. Old Testament a god of the Philistines (2 Kings 1:2)

  2. Satan or any devil or demon

"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
Beelzebub Cultural  

  1. Another name for Satan. Originally a Philistine god, he is called the Prince of Devils in the New Testament.

Discover More

By extension, a “Beelzebub” is any demon or evil spirit.

Beelzebub also appears in Milton's Paradise Lost as one of the fallen angels, second only to Satan in power.

Etymology

Origin of Beelzebub

Old English Belzebub , ultimately from Hebrew bá`al zebūb , literally: lord of flies

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

With the goalie nowhere to be found, Beelzebub had a wide open cage that even the bendiest bender could have scored on.

From Golf Digest • Jan. 26, 2020

That the narrator is a figure who has been likened in some quarters to Beelzebub makes the story more interesting, or at least curious.

From New York Times • Jun. 26, 2018

The show is a kind of trashy “Pilgrim’s Progress,” with Charity meeting her version of Beelzebub, Evangelist, and so on, as she tries not to give up on the possibility of a relationship.

From The New Yorker • Nov. 27, 2016

In Landless Theatre Company’s “prog-metal” version, Andrew Lloyd Baughman sings with the gravelly voice of Beelzebub while electric guitars chime in the background.

From Washington Post • Jul. 27, 2015

He soon realizes that, lying next to him similarly battered, is his lieutenant, Beelzebub.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.