Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

what the devil

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.30 in modern English

Syllables: what the dev-il
IPA

25

Scrabble Score

12

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

intj

Used to add emphasis to “what” when beginning a question.

Example Sentences

"What the Devil have you done to the horse?"
"What the devyll hast thou on thy fyste? An owle?"

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English what þe devel, what devel.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: what þe devel

Synonyms

what the dickens what on earth what in God's name

Questions

What does what the devil mean?: Used to add emphasis to “what” when beginning a question.
Where does what the devil come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce what the devil

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “what the devil”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
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