Significato: a devil of a fellow

un furbacchione, uno che la sa lunga, uno che sa il fatto suo

evil Idioma

better the devil you know...

a new devil could be worse than the old devil """Should we fire the coach?"" ""No - better the devil we know than the one we don't."""

between the devil and the deep blue sea

in a difficult position, no place to go, between a rock..., Sophie's choice "If he ran, they would shoot him; if he stayed in the shop, the gas would kill him. He was between the devil and the deep blue sea."

devil-may-care

carefree, wild, on a lark Employers won't hire people with a devil-may-care attitude.

dust devil

small whirlwind, twister Dust devils seemed to follow us as we walked across the field.

give him the evil eye

look fierce or evil, stare in a bad way When I testified in court, the prisoner gave me the evil eye.

give the devil his due

be fair (even to someone who is bad and who you dislike) I don

lesser of two evils

both are bad but one is not as bad as the other Neither person can be trusted. Choose the lesser of two evils.

like the devil

quickly, too fast to see, like hell The disease spread like the devil. Soon his whole leg was swollen.

money is the root of all evil

money is the cause of bad things If money is the root of all evil, why do you want to be rich?

speak of the devil and he appears

a person comes just when one is talking about him "Speak of the devil and he appears," I said just as our colleague who we were talking about walked in the door.

the devil makes work for idle hands

if a person is not busy he will do evil things, work ethic The protestants believe children should be busy because the devil makes work for idle hands.

devil

an enemy, usually white people: "The devil made me do it" -- Paris (the devil made me do it)

devil's buckie

a perverse, refractory yougster

play the devil with

cause confusion in；upset扰乱；破坏
The high winds played the devil with my new hairstyle．大风吹乱了我的新发型。
Mother's illness played the devil with our party．由于母亲生病，我们取消了聚会。

There will be the devil to pay

Idiom(s): There will be the devil to pay

Theme: TROUBLE

There will be lots of trouble.
• If you damage my car, there will be the devil to pay.
• Bill broke a window, and now there will be the devil to pay.

speak of the devil

Idiom(s): speak of the devil

Theme: IDENTIFICATION

said when someone whose name has just been mentioned appears or is heard from.
• Well, speak of the devil! Hello, Tom. We were just talking about you.
• I had just mentioned Sally when—speak of the devil—she walked in the door.

raise the devil

Idiom(s): raise the devil (with sb or sth) AND raise hell (with sb/sth); raise cain (with sb or sth); raise the dickens (with sb/sth)

Theme: INCITE

to act in some extreme manner; to make trouble; to behave wildly; to be very angry. (Informal. Use hell with caution.)
• John was out all night raising the devil.
• Don't come around here and raise hell with everybody.
• That cheap gas I bought really raised the dickens with my car's engine.

play the devil's advocate

Idiom(s): play (the) devil's advocate

Theme: ARGUMENT

to put forward arguments against or objections to a proposition—which one may actually agree with—purely to test the validity of the proposition. (The devil's advocate was given the role of opposing the canonization of a saint in the medieval Church in order to prove that the grounds for canonization were sound.)
• I agree with your plan. I'm just playing the devils advocate so you'll know-what the opposition will say.
• Mary offered to play devils advocate and argue against our case so that we would find out any flaws in it.

have the devil to pay

Idiom(s): have the devil to pay AND have hell to pay

Theme: TROUBLE

to have a great deal of trouble. (Informal. Use hell with caution.)
• If you cheat on your income taxes, you'll have the devil to pay.
• I came home after three in the morning and had hell to pay.

give sb the devil

Idiom(s): give someone the devil AND give someone hell

Theme: SCOLDING

to scold someone severely. (Informal. Use hell with caution.)
• I'm going to give Bill hell when he gets home. He's late again.
• Bill, why do I always have to give you the devil?

get the devil

Idiom(s): get the devil AND catch hell; catch the devil; get hell

Theme: SCOLDING

to receive a severe scolding. (Informal. Use hell with caution.)
• Bill is always getting the devil about something.
• I'm late. If I don t get home soon, I'll catch hell!
• I caught the devil yesterday for being late.

full of the devil

Idiom(s): full of the devil AND full of Old Nick

Theme: BEHAVIOR - IMPROPER

always making mischief. (Informal. Old Nick is another name for the devil.)
• Tom is a lot of fun, but he's sure full of the devil.
• I've never seen a child get into so much mischief He's really full of Old Nick.

for the devil of it

Idiom(s): for the devil of it

Theme: ENJOYMENT

just for fun; because it is slightly evil; for no good reason.
• We filled their garage with leaves just for the devil of it.
• Tom tripped Bill for the devil of it.

devil-may-care attitude

Idiom(s): devil-may-care attitude AND devil-may-care manner

Theme: CAREFREE

a very casual attitude; a worry-free or carefree attitude.
• You must get rid of your devil-may-care attitude if you want to succeed.
• She acts so thoughtless with her devil-may-care manner.

devil of a job

Idiom(s): devil of a job AND the devil's own job

Theme: WORK

the most difficult task. (Informal. The first entry is usually with a.)
• We had a devil of a job fixing the car.
• It was the devil's own job finding a hotel with vacancies.

the devil's own job

go to the devil

Idiom(s): go to (hell) AND go to (the devil)

Theme: RUIN

to become ruined; to go away and stop bothering (someone). (Informal. Use hell with caution.)
• This old house is just going to hell. It's falling apart everywhere.
• Leave me alone! Go to the devil!
• Oh, go to, yourself!

give the devil her due

Idiom(s): give the devil his due AND give the devil her due

Theme: PRAISE

to give your foe proper credit (for something). (This usually refers to a person who has been evil— like the devil.)
• She's generally impossible, but I have to give the devil her due. She bakes a terrific cherry pie.
• John may cheat on his taxes and yell at his wife, but he keeps his car polished. I'll give the devil his due.

devil-may-care manner

catch the devil

An idle brain is the devil's workshop.

When you work you avoid temptation.

Better the devil you know than the devil you don't

It's better to deal with somebody difficult but familiar, than change and risk dealing with somebody worse.

Money is the root of all evil.

Money is the main cause of wrongdoing and problems.

The devil looks after his own.

Success comes to those who deserve it least .

Better the devil you know

This is the shortened form of the full idiom, 'better the devil you know than the devil you don't', and means that it is often better to deal with someone or something you are familiar with and know, even if they are not ideal, than take a risk with an unknown person or thing.

Devil finds work for idle hands

When people say that the devil finds work for idle hands, they mean that if people don't have anything to do with their time, they are more likely to get involved in trouble and criminality.

Devil is in the detail

When people say that the devil in the detail, they mean that small things in plans and schemes that are often overlooked can cause serious problems later on.

Devil may care

If you live a devil-may-care life it means you are willing to take more risks than most people.

Devil's advocate

If someone plays Devil's advocate in an argument, they adopt a position they don't believe in just for the sake of the argument

Idle hands are the devil's handiwork

When someone is not busy, or being productive, trouble is bound to follow.

If you lie down with the Devil, you will wake up i

This means that if you become involved with bad company, there will be negative consequences.

Let the devil take the hindmost

This idiom means that you should think of yourself and not be concerned about other people; look after yourself and let the devil take the hindmost.

Speak of the devil!

If you are talking about someone and they happen to walk in, you can use this idiom as a way of letting them know you were talking about them.

Idle Hands Are The Devil's Tools

You are more likely to get in trouble if you have nothing to do.

Talk of the devil and the devil appears.

This is said in jest when a person we have been talking about meets us.

devil of it|devil|heck|heck of it

n. phr. 1. The worst or most unlucky thing about a trouble or accident; the part that is most regrettable. Andy lost his notebook, and the devil of it was that the notebook contained all his homework for the coming week. When I had a flat tire, the devil of it was that my spare tire was flat too. 2. Fun from doing mischief.

Used after "for". The boys carried away Miss White's front gate just for the devil of it.

devil to pay|devil|pay

n. phr. Great trouble.

Used after "the". There'll be the devil to pay when the teacher finds out who broke the window. When Jim wrecked his father's car, there was the devil to pay.

devil-may-care|care|devil

adj. Not caring what happens; unworried. Johnny has a devil-may-care feeling about his school work. Alfred was a devil-may-care youth but became more serious as he grew older.

devil-may-care attitude|attitude|care|devil

n. phr. An attitude of no concern for financial or other loss. "Easy come, easy go," John said in a devil-may-care attitude when he lost all of his money during a poker game.

for the devil|for the heck|for the hell of it|heck

adv. phr. For no specific reason; just for sport and fun. We poured salt into Uncle Tom's coffee, just for the heck of it. See: DEVIL OF IT.

More Idioms/Phrases

for real for shame for short for that matter for the asking for the best for the better for the birds for the devil for the life of one for the most part for the nonce for the sake of for the worse for to force one's hand force play