devilry
Americannoun
noun
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reckless or malicious fun or mischief
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wickedness or cruelty
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black magic or other forms of diabolism
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of devilry
Middle English word dating back to 1325–75; see origin at devil, -ry
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.
See Examples For:
He possessed both the winemaking skills and an appetite for devilry.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2025
That makes a person wonder what manner of devilry they're concealing; after all, if there's literally nothing to see in front of us, surely it's hiding elsewhere.
From Salon ● Feb. 12, 2022
In the Thuringian town of Eisenach, where Bach was born, quasi-pagan notions of devilry still prevailed.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 25, 2016
A different, more downbeat brand of devilry is afoot in "The Exorcist," which takes off from William Peter Blatty’s bestselling 1971 novel and director William Friedkin's 1973 film.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2016
‘But the Orcs have brought a devilry from Orthanc,’ said Aragorn.
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
For kingly opportunities Right many have sighed; How best to bear its devilries Those learn who have tried!
From Satires of Circumstance, lyrics and reveries with miscellaneous pieces by Hardy, Thomas
So, if they come here and begin their devilries, you run for your life down to the river, opposite Ballygan, with a white cloth or a shirt, if it's daytime, and wave it.
From Orange and Green A Tale of the Boyne and Limerick by Henty, G. A. (George Alfred)
Giuliano, who had been an associate of the Duke and an abettor of Lorenzino's "devilries," fled precipitately from Florence, and sought the protection of the Duke of Milan.
From The Tragedies of the Medici by Staley, Edgcumbe
The Second Part of Faust is devilry all through, a tissue of bewilderments and devilries.
From The Three Devils: Luther's, Milton's, and Goethe's With Other Essays by Masson, David
Of all his myrmidons' devilries done in the land The last to hear!
From Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 98, May 31, 1890 by Various
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.
