diabolism

[dahy-ab-uh-liz-uh m]

See more synonyms for diabolism on Thesaurus.com

noun

Theology.
1. action aided or caused by the devil; sorcery; witchcraft.
2. the character or condition of a devil.
3. a doctrine concerning devils.
4. a belief in or worship of devils.
action befitting the devil; deviltry.

Origin of diabolism

1600–10; < Greek diábol(os) devil + -ism

Related formsdi·ab·o·list, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for diabolism

fascination, illusion, wizardry, witchcraft, harm, pain, catastrophe, calamity, ill, wrong, corruption, suffering, misery, hatred, crime, sin, necromancy, foreboding, augury, prediction

Examples from the Web for diabolism

Historical Examples of diabolism

A wizard was understandable; but this was diabolism beyond sanity.
The Hour of the Dragon
Robert E. Howard
Here were signs of grace on one side, and diabolism on the other.
A Breeze from the Woods, 2nd Ed.
William Chauncey Bartlett
It is merely the diabolism of instinct that prompts the young to believe that the race is all.
Ancestors
Gertrude Atherton
Diabolism seemed to be a cheerful, even a wholesome, influence in his life.
Seven Men
Max Beerbohm
It has troubled me, said Herring, but helped me, to hear that Frye was a channel for that diabolism.
The Religio-Medical Masquerade
Frederick William Peabody

British Dictionary definitions for diabolism

diabolism

noun

1. activities designed to enlist the aid of devils, esp in witchcraft or sorcery
2. worship of devils or beliefs and teachings concerning them
3. the nature of devils
character or conduct that is devilish or fiendish; devilry

Derived Formsdiabolist, 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

Word Origin and History for diabolism

c.1600s, from Ecclesiastical Greek diabolos "devil" (see devil (n.)) + -ism.