DEVILMENT

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does devilment mean? 

• DEVILMENT (noun)
  The noun DEVILMENT has 1 sense:

1. reckless or malicious behavior that causes discomfort or annoyance in others

  Familiarity information: DEVILMENT used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• DEVILMENT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Reckless or malicious behavior that causes discomfort or annoyance in others

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

devilment; devilry; deviltry; mischief; mischief-making; mischievousness; rascality; roguery; roguishness; shenanigan

Hypernyms ("devilment" is a kind of...):

misbehavior; misbehaviour; misdeed (improper or wicked or immoral behavior)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "devilment"):

blaze; hell (noisy and unrestrained mischief)

monkey business (mischievous or deceitful behavior)

hooliganism; malicious mischief; vandalism (willful wanton and malicious destruction of the property of others)

Derivation:

devil (cause annoyance in; disturb, especially by minor irritations)

 Context examples 

Yet when Alleyne had passed him, of a sudden, out of pure devilment, he screamed out a curse at him, and sent a jagged flint stone hurtling past his ear.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Finally, there was our host, with his rugged, eagle face, and his cold, blue, glacier eyes with always a shimmer of devilment and of humor down in the depths of them.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)