"bedevil" meaning in English

See bedevil in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Verb

IPA: [bɪˈdɛvəɫ] [UK], /bɪˈdɛvəl/ [US], /biˈdɛvəl/ [US] Audio: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav [Southern-England] Forms: bedevils [present, singular, third-person], bedeviling [participle, present], bedevilling [participle, present], bedeviled [participle, past], bedeviled [past], bedevilled [participle, past], bedevilled [past]
Etymology: be- + devil Etymology templates: {{prefix|en|be|devil}} be- + devil Head templates: {{en-verb|past2=bedevilled|past_ptc2=bedevilled|pres_ptc2=bedevilling}} bedevil (third-person singular simple present bedevils, present participle bedeviling or bedevilling, simple past and past participle bedeviled or bedevilled)
  1. To harass or cause trouble for; to plague. Translations (to harass): tourmenter (French), harceler (French), plagen (German), heimsuchen (German), assillare (Italian), tormentare (Italian), atormentar (Portuguese), hărțui (Romanian), му́чить (múčitʹ) (Russian), терза́ть (terzátʹ) (Russian), atormentar (Spanish)
    Sense id: en-bedevil-en-verb-5PH3JeXn Disambiguation of 'to harass': 94 3 3
  2. To perplex or bewilder.
    Sense id: en-bedevil-en-verb-bCQkbw5Y Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, English terms prefixed with be- Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 16 77 7 Disambiguation of English terms prefixed with be-: 33 47 20
  3. (originally) To possess (someone's mind).
    Sense id: en-bedevil-en-verb-VE8Trv0J

Inflected forms

Download JSON data for bedevil meaning in English (4.1kB)

{
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "be",
        "3": "devil"
      },
      "expansion": "be- + devil",
      "name": "prefix"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "be- + devil",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "bedevils",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedeviling",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedevilling",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedeviled",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedeviled",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedevilled",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedevilled",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "past2": "bedevilled",
        "past_ptc2": "bedevilled",
        "pres_ptc2": "bedevilling"
      },
      "expansion": "bedevil (third-person singular simple present bedevils, present participle bedeviling or bedevilling, simple past and past participle bedeviled or bedevilled)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Guerrilla attacks continued to bedevil the larger army's supply routes.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1988 December 19, William Styron, “Why Primo Levi Need Not Have Died”, in The New York Times, →ISSN",
          "text": "Mr. Levi may have been bedeviled by buried conflicts unrelated to Auschwitz.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2013, Rockstar Games, Grand Theft Auto V, scene: The Third Way,",
          "text": "Michael De Santa (Ned Luke): You know, Devin [Devin Winston], the way I see it, and hey, I'm no intelligent businessman like you, but the way I see it, there's two great evils that bedevil American capitalism of the type that you practice.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To harass or cause trouble for; to plague."
      ],
      "id": "en-bedevil-en-verb-5PH3JeXn",
      "links": [
        [
          "plague",
          "plague"
        ]
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "tourmenter"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "harceler"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "plagen"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "heimsuchen"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "assillare"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "tormentare"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "atormentar"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "ro",
          "lang": "Romanian",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "hărțui"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "múčitʹ",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "му́чить"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "terzátʹ",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "терза́ть"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "94 3 3",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "to harass",
          "word": "atormentar"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "16 77 7",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "33 47 20",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English terms prefixed with be-",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To perplex or bewilder."
      ],
      "id": "en-bedevil-en-verb-bCQkbw5Y",
      "links": [
        [
          "perplex",
          "perplex"
        ],
        [
          "bewilder",
          "bewilder"
        ]
      ]
    },
    {
      "glosses": [
        "To possess (someone's mind)."
      ],
      "id": "en-bedevil-en-verb-VE8Trv0J",
      "links": [
        [
          "possess",
          "possess"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "originally",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(originally) To possess (someone's mind)."
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "[bɪˈdɛvəɫ]",
      "tags": [
        "UK"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/bɪˈdɛvəl/",
      "tags": [
        "US"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/biˈdɛvəl/",
      "tags": [
        "US"
      ]
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/e/e8/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/e/e8/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Southern-England"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (Southern England)"
    }
  ],
  "word": "bedevil"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English 3-syllable words",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English terms prefixed with be-",
    "English terms with IPA pronunciation",
    "English terms with audio links",
    "English verbs"
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "be",
        "3": "devil"
      },
      "expansion": "be- + devil",
      "name": "prefix"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "be- + devil",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "bedevils",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedeviling",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedevilling",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedeviled",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedeviled",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedevilled",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "bedevilled",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "past2": "bedevilled",
        "past_ptc2": "bedevilled",
        "pres_ptc2": "bedevilling"
      },
      "expansion": "bedevil (third-person singular simple present bedevils, present participle bedeviling or bedevilling, simple past and past participle bedeviled or bedevilled)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Guerrilla attacks continued to bedevil the larger army's supply routes.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1988 December 19, William Styron, “Why Primo Levi Need Not Have Died”, in The New York Times, →ISSN",
          "text": "Mr. Levi may have been bedeviled by buried conflicts unrelated to Auschwitz.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2013, Rockstar Games, Grand Theft Auto V, scene: The Third Way,",
          "text": "Michael De Santa (Ned Luke): You know, Devin [Devin Winston], the way I see it, and hey, I'm no intelligent businessman like you, but the way I see it, there's two great evils that bedevil American capitalism of the type that you practice.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To harass or cause trouble for; to plague."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "plague",
          "plague"
        ]
      ]
    },
    {
      "glosses": [
        "To perplex or bewilder."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "perplex",
          "perplex"
        ],
        [
          "bewilder",
          "bewilder"
        ]
      ]
    },
    {
      "glosses": [
        "To possess (someone's mind)."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "possess",
          "possess"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "originally",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(originally) To possess (someone's mind)."
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "[bɪˈdɛvəɫ]",
      "tags": [
        "UK"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/bɪˈdɛvəl/",
      "tags": [
        "US"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/biˈdɛvəl/",
      "tags": [
        "US"
      ]
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/e/e8/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/e/e8/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-bedevil.wav.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Southern-England"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (Southern England)"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "tourmenter"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "harceler"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "plagen"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "heimsuchen"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "assillare"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "tormentare"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "atormentar"
    },
    {
      "code": "ro",
      "lang": "Romanian",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "hărțui"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "múčitʹ",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "му́чить"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "terzátʹ",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "терза́ть"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "to harass",
      "word": "atormentar"
    }
  ],
  "word": "bedevil"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-05-01 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-04-21 using wiktextract (f4fd8c9 and c9440ce). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.