Word.ws English Dictionary

be a devil

be a devil interjection: used to encourage someone to do something when they are unsure whether they should.

Interjection

  1. (UK, informal) Used to encourage someone to do something when they are unsure whether they should.
    • Just after a woman announcer had read the weather forecast before the BBC's 10 o'clock radio news last night a man was heard to say: “Go on. Be a devil. Give us a bit." The BBC was inundated with calls and letters wishing the happy couple every happiness in their future together.1967, Encounter - Volume 29, page 95
    • You don't need to lose any, but try it. Be a devil.1987, Susan Musgrave, The Dancing Chicken: A Novel, page 48

Questions about be a devil

What does be a devil mean?
Be a devil means used to encourage someone to do something when they are unsure whether they should.
What part of speech is be a devil?
Be a devil is an interjection.

Words near be a devil in the dictionary

  1. BDU
  2. BDUF
  3. BDW
  4. bdóte
  5. be
  6. be a devil
  7. be a hundred years too early
  8. be a man
  9. be a one
  10. be a poet and not know it
  11. be able to

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: be a devil (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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