Halloween 2: devil
Devil
Idiom | Explanation | Example |
---|---|---|
be a devil | encourage someone to do something they are unsure of | Be a devil and eat that last piece of cake! |
between the devil and the deep blue sea | forced to choose between two equally bad options | Walk home in the rain or wait an hour to be picked up – I’m stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea. |
devil’s advocate | argue a point you don’t agree with to keep a discussion going | Teachers often play devil’s advocate in the classroom to keep students talking. |
speak/talk of the devil | said to someone who you’ve been speaking about when the suddenly appear | “Speak of the devil, we were just talking about you.” |
who/what/where the devil…? | used in questions to emphasize annoyance or anger | Who the devil are you? |
better the devil you know (than the devil you don’t) | proverb: it is better to stay in a familar but unpleasant situation than to put yourself in an unfamiliar situation which may be worse | Adam didn’t like his job anymore but he decided not apply for a new one. His mother had always told him ‘better the devil you know than the devil you don’t'. |
the devil is in the details | the details of something are the most difficult thing about it |
“Look. I’ve almost finished sewing this jacket and it’s only taken half an hour!” “Yes, but the devil is in the details, it’s going to take you twice as long to finish those last few things!” |
the devils’s own… | emphasizes the difficulty of something | It was the devil’s own job to put the children to bed at 8 o’clock. |
the devil to pay | serious trouble | We’ll have the devil to pay if we don’t get home before midnight! |