she-devil

Noun

she-devil (plural she-devils)

1. (literally) A female devil (as opposed to a he-devil, male devil).
   • In order to exorcise this she-devil, the attendants made circles on the walls with charcoal, within each was written: "Adam, Eve, Lilas, avaunt!"1936, Rollo Ahmed, The Black Art, London: Long, page 114

   Synonyms:

   deviless, devilette

2. (figuratively) A woman whose bad temper, cruelty or wicked ways are so extreme as to evoke an image of the devil.
   • Monsieur Margot groaned. “Go, then, my friend,” said he, “procure the ladder! Oh, those she devils!—what could make me such a fool!”1828, [Edward Bulwer-Lytton], chapter XVI, in Pelham; or, The Adventures of a Gentleman. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 130

   Synonyms:

   shrew