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Old Nick

American  

noun

Informal.
  1. the devil; Satan.


Old Nick British  

noun

  1. informal a jocular name for Satan

"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

Etymology

Origin of Old Nick

First recorded in 1660–70

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.

Zeb Williams, owner of Old Nick Williams, said it exemplifies the quality people in the local liquor business.

From Washington Times • Mar. 22, 2020

Their best answer to date is the other “goblin metal” closely associated with cobalt, nickel, whose name comes from a German spirit closely related to Old Nick.

From Economist • Mar. 22, 2018

His deputy called him diabolus bibliothecae, “the devil of the library”; others referred to him simply as Old Nick.

From The New Yorker • May 1, 2017

It's a question tackled by Alastair Sooke as he considers depictions of Old Nick in the centuries leading up to the Renaissance, an exploration that takes in Giotto and Dante, among others.

From The Guardian • Oct. 29, 2012

No wonder our factotum believed he had seen the Old Nick.

From Camp Fires of the Wolf Patrol by Douglas, Alan

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