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dickens

[ dik-inz ]
/ ˈdɪk ɪnz /
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noun
Usually the dickens . devil; deuce (often used in exclamations and as a mild oath): The dickens you say! What the dickens does he want?
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Origin of dickens

First recorded in 1590–1600; apparently a fanciful use of Dicken, form of Dick, a proper name

Other definitions for dickens (2 of 2)

Dickens
[ dik-inz ]
/ ˈdɪk ɪnz /

noun
Charles John Huf·fam, [huhf-uhm], /ˈhʌf əm/, "Boz", 1812–70, English novelist.

OTHER WORDS FROM Dickens

Dick·en·si·an [dih-ken-zee-uhn], /dɪˈkɛn zi ən/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use dickens in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dickens (1 of 2)

dickens
/ (ˈdɪkɪnz) /

noun
informal a euphemistic word for devil what the dickens?

Word Origin for dickens

C16: from the name Dickens

British Dictionary definitions for dickens (2 of 2)

Dickens
/ (ˈdɪkɪnz) /

noun
Charles (John Huffam), pen name Boz. 1812–70, English novelist, famous for the humour and sympathy of his characterization and his criticism of social injustice. His major works include The Pickwick Papers (1837), Oliver Twist (1839), Nicholas Nickleby (1839), Old Curiosity Shop (1840–41), Martin Chuzzlewit (1844), David Copperfield (1850), Bleak House (1853), Little Dorrit (1857), and Great Expectations (1861)
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
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