dickensn.

Brit.

/ˈdɪkɪnz/, U.S.

/ˈdɪkənz/

Forms: 1500s–1800s dickens, 1600s–1700s dickins, 1700s–1800s dickons, 1800s dickings, 1800s dickonce.

Origin: From a proper name. Etymon: Dickens.

Etymology: < the surname Dickens (also Dickons , Dickins ; 1377 as Dicones ), as a substitution for devil n., as having the same initial sound (compare similar use of deuce n.²). Perhaps compare also -kins suffix.The surname is in origin a variant of Dicken (compare -s suffix¹), which itself arose from the forename Dicun , a pet form of Dick (see dick n.¹).

colloquial. Now often used in a consciously archaic way.

I. In oaths, asseverations, and phrases, originally as a euphemistic substitute for devil.

1. Intensifying an interrogative word or phrase, as what (also where, how, etc.) the dickens; formerly also †what (also where, how, etc.) a dickens: used to express incredulity, annoyance, etc.Cf. devil n. Phrases 1d(a), what the deuce? at deuce n.² b.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > language > malediction > oaths > [interjection] > euphemisms for stronger oaths > for the devil

dickens1599

dash1883

1599 T. Heywood 1st Pt. King Edward IV sig. E3 What the dickens is it loue that makes ye prate to me so fondly.

1671 J. Caryll Sir Salomon iii. 45 What a dickens is come to our Master?

1677 T. D'Urfey Madam Fickle ii. 14 Oh have I found you at last? I wonder where the Dickins you ramble!

1794 J. Wolcot Rowland for Oliver in Wks. II. 308 Then what a dickens can I do or say?

1872 J. W. De Forest Kate Beaumont xv. 62 Who the dickens told you that nonsense?

1882 Cent. Mag. Feb. 491/1 I wonder how the dickens I got my Nightshirt all over tar like that.

1922 ‘R. Crompton’ Just—William i. 26 Why the dickens is the young idiot coming at this time of day?

2004 N.Y. Times 19 Dec. (Week in Review section)11/3 Who the dickens are you?

2. (the) dickens take you (also him, her, it, etc.): used to express dismissal, contempt, impatience, etc. Now rare.Cf. the devil take you at devil n. Phrases 1b(a), the deuce take it! at deuce n.² b.

ΚΠ

1653 T. Urquhart tr. F. Rabelais 1st Bk. Wks. Prol. 7 Hearken joltheads..or dickens take ye.

1693 T. D'Urfey Richmond Heiress iv. i. 33 Ah dickins take it, it won't do now, yet I could have Sung my Sol, Fa, when I was a Batchelour.

1770 I. Bickerstaff 'Tis Well it's no Worse v. i. 87 The dickens take him, he has put me in such a tremble, as I have not been in this twelve-month.

1841 Chambers's London Jrnl. 21 Aug. 91/1 ‘Why, then, the dickens take you, Sporteen,’ said she.., ‘what do you mane by stickin' your devil of a needle into me?’

1884 Northern Echo 11 Mar. 4/2 A faction was a number of men allied together for the furtherance of some interest, and—well, the dickens take the principle.

1936 Referee (Sydney) 23 July 1/2 Before Mr. Broughton's time, the bruisers of England were content to exchange blow for blow, and the dickens take the breakages of nose, rib, and jaw.

a. (oh) the dickens!: used as an interjection expressing surprise, irritation, exasperation, etc. Now archaic and rare.Cf. devil n. Phrases 1d(b).In quot. 1697 as one of a number of interjections made by a character in response to a letter he is reading aloud.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > mental capacity > expectation > surprise, unexpectedness > exclamation of surprise [interjection]

whatOE

well, wellOE

avoyc1300

ouc1300

ay1340

lorda1393

ahaa1400

hillaa1400

whannowc1450

wow1513

why?1520

heydaya1529

ah1538

ah me!a1547

fore me!a1547

o me!a1547

what the (also a) goodyear1570

precious coals1576

Lord have mercy (on us)1581

good heavens1588

whau1589

coads1590

ay me!1591

my stars!a1593

Gods me1595

law1598

Godso1600

to go out1600

coads-nigs1608

for mercy!a1616

good stars!1615

mercy on us (also me, etc.)!a1616

gramercy1617

goodness1623

what next?1662

mon Dieu1665

heugh1668

criminy1681

Lawd1696

the dickens1697

(God, etc.) bless my heart1704

alackaday1705

(for) mercy's sake!1707

my1707

deuce1710

gracious1712

goodly and gracious1713

my word1722

my stars and garters!1758

lawka1774

losha1779

Lord bless me (also you, us, etc.)1784

great guns!1795

mein Gott1795

Dear me!1805

fancy1813

well, I'm sure!1815

massy1817

Dear, dear!1818

to get off1818

laws1824

Mamma mia1824

by crikey1826

wisha1826

alleleu1829

crackey1830

Madonna mia1830

indeed1834

to go on1835

snakes1839

Jerusalem1840

sapristi1840

oh my days1841

tear and ages1841

what (why, etc.) in time?1844

sakes alive!1846

gee willikers1847

to get away1847

well, to be sure!1847

gee1851

Great Scott1852

holy mackerel!1855

doggone1857

lawsy1868

my wig(s)!1871

gee whiz1872

crimes1874

yoicks1881

Christmas1882

hully gee1895

'ullo1895

my hat!1899

good (also great) grief!1900

strike me pink!1902

oo-er1909

what do you know?1909

cripes1910

coo1911

zowiec1913

can you tie that?1918

hot diggety1924

yeow1924

ziggety1924

stone (or stiffen) the crows1930

hullo1931

tiens1932

whammo1932

po po po1936

how about that?1939

hallo1942

brother1945

tie that!1948

surprise1953

wowee1963

yikes1971

never1974

to sod off1976

whee1978

mercy1986

yipes1989

1697 J. Vanbrugh Æsop iii. 33 Æs. Reads... I therefore hope this from your Justice, that what you have done three times your self, you'll pardon once in your Daughter. The Dickins.

1728 C. Cibber Vanbrugh's Provok'd Husband iv. i. 56 The dickens! has this Rogue of a Count play'd us another Trick then?

1877 Frank Leslie's Pop. Monthly Aug. 239/1 ‘The dickens!’ said Mr. Gallup—(he might have used a more profane expression on a week-day)—‘The dickens! What's he about?’

1900 E. S. Worthington Gentle Art Cooking Wives iii. 47 ‘And then..he bent and kissed me.’ ‘The dickens!’ cried Randolph.

1947 News-Palladium (Benton Harbor, Mich.) 30 Jan. 4/6 Oh the dickens, Miss Fletcher, you know what I mean!

2010 @tiranshuman 14 Sept. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) Oh the dickens my stomach bubbling like it has Alka Seltzer and Gingerale inside it.

b. With the. In emphatic expressions of negation, esp. in responses expressing contradiction, disbelief, denial, etc., as the dickens he is (also has, etc.). Now rare.Cf. devil n. Phrases 1e(a).

ΚΠ

1762 ‘T. Bobbin’ Toy-shop Open'd 47 That's eawer yung Cowt ot lies reawt sed Yed. The Dickons it is sed I!

1775 D. Garrick May-Day ii. 18 Gip. She is in this parish, and not above twenty yards from the maypole. Clod. The dickens she is! who? who is it?

1842 S. Lover Handy Andy xxiii. 201 The dickins a mind he minded the market.

1884 Illustr. London News Christmas No. 19/3 ‘The dickens you are’, thought Fred.

1914 Corona (Calif.) Daily Independent 17 June ‘Why not sit down and let me take a look at that tooth.’ ‘Tooth the dickens!’ cried the man.

1943 Methodist (Sydney) 27 Mar. 11/2 ‘I've been thinking about it for a long time.’ ‘The dickens you have!’

4. to play the (very) dickens (with): to cause mischief (for); to wreak havoc (on).Cf. to play the devil with at devil n. Phrases 4a, to play the deuce with at deuce n.² b, to play hell with at hell n. and int. Phrases 5a(a).

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > order > disorder > become disordered [verb (intransitive)] > cause disorder

to make havoc1480

to play the devil (also the very devil, the devil and all)1542

to play the dickens1771

to work havoca1774

to play smash1841

to play havoc1910

1771 T. Smollett Humphry Clinker I. 229 He [sc. the lion] would roar, and tear, and play the dickens.

1831 T. Moore Summer Fête 822 Like those Goths who played the dickens With Rome and all her sacred chickens.

1861 G. A. Sala Dutch Pict. xiii. 199 They [sc. the children] played the very dickens with Doctor Pantologos.

1938 Winnipeg Evening Tribune 25 Feb. 13/1 According to the laundry industry of New York state, the old Monday habit plays the very dickens with the laundries.

1993 Atlanta Jrnl. & Constit. (Nexis) 15 May e1 A new pest has made it all the way past New Orleans: a freshwater mollusk that plays the dickens with drinking water systems.

5. In similes.

a. (as) —— as the dickens: —— to a great degree; extremely or excessively ——.Cf. (as) —— as the devil at devil n. Phrases 2b.

ΚΠ

1822 Weekly Visitor & Ladies' Museum 21 Dec. 118/2 Away Jake and I went down the Bowery like old Nick; cold as the dickens; had no great coat, had left it in the country.

1955 Time 31 Oct. 84 Whenever you have 2,000 workers, you always have misunderstandings—most of them as petty as the dickens.

1977 Newsday 19 Mar. 40/2 ‘It must have been 110 degrees in that ring,’ Gil Clancy said. ‘Hot as the dickens,’ Foreman said.

2014 @erin_lindsay92 22 Apr. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) I am obsessed with Prince George. That baby is as cute as the dickens.

b. like the dickens: (used adverbially as an intensifier) with great speed, energy, violence, etc.

ΚΠ

1823 Weekly Visitor & Ladies' Museum 1 Mar. 279/2 We..got Uncle Long to get his horse and sleigh ready; bid the girls good-night, and started off like the dickens.

1892 Ballou's Monthly Mag. Mar. 241/2 My jacket caught in a branch and tore like the dickens.

1921 P. G. Wodehouse Let. 23 Mar. in Yours, Plum (1990) i. 19 I worked like the dickens..and wrote twelve thousand words of the Sally novel.

1971 Ada (Okla.) Weekly News 12 Aug. 4/1 If there was ever a vegetable villain it is the turnip...It smells like the dickens while cooking.

2000 Newsweek (U.S. ed.) (Nexis) 8 May (Periscope section) 8 Black flies..get in under clothes, bite often and hurt like the dickens.

6. a (also the, one) dickens of a —— and variants: (used as an intensifier, emphasizing size or degree) a considerable or remarkable ——.Cf. a devil of a —— at devil n. Phrases 1g, a hell of a —— at hell n. and int. Phrases 4a.

ΚΠ

1829 T. C. Croker Legends Lakes I. 53 See how the white water comes biling..over the big black rocks... And then it makes such a dickins of a nise as it pounces into that black pool at the bottom.

1845 W. Carleton Parra Sastha v. 133 You're the dickens of a funny crathur, Nancy, so you are.

1871 Judy 1 Nov. 12/2 Tell you what, my dear boy, the Government is in the very dickens of a stew.

1912 H. Collingwood Adventures Dick Maitland xii. 189 No wonder that he was in such a dickens of a bad temper!

1995 B. Bryson Notes from Small Island (1996) vii. 106 Whoever was the person behind Stonehenge was one dickens of a motivator, I'll tell you that.

7. to go to the dickens: to go to ruin; to fail or be ruined completely. Also in constructions with imperative force expressing contemptuous dismissal or rejection, such as you (he, she, etc.) can go to the dickens.Cf. to go to the devil at devil n. Phrases 1b(b), to go to hell at hell n. and int. Phrases 3b.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > failure or lack of success > fail or be unsuccessful [verb (intransitive)]

withsitc1330

fail1340

defaulta1382

errc1430

to fall (also go) by the wayside1526

misthrive1567

miss1599

to come bad, or no, speedc1600

shrink1608

abortivea1670

maroon1717

to flash in the pan1792

skunk1831

to go to the dickens1833

to miss fire1838

to fall flat1841

fizzle1847

to lose out1858

to fall down1873

to crap out1891

flivver1912

flop1919

skid1920

to lay an egg1929

to blow out1939

to strike out1946

bomb1963

to come (also have) a buster1968

the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > destroy [verb (intransitive)] > be destroyed, ruined, or come to an end

losec888

fallOE

forlesea1225

perishc1275

spilla1300

to go to wreche13..

to go to the gatec1330

to go to lostc1374

miscarryc1387

quenchc1390

to bring unto, to fall into, to go, put, or work to wrakea1400

mischieve?a1400

tinea1400

to go to the devilc1405

bursta1450

untwindc1460

to make shipwreck1526

to go to (the) pot1531

to go to wreck (and ruin)a1547

wrake1570

wracka1586

to hop (also tip, pitch over, drop off, etc.) the perch1587

to lie in the dusta1591

mischief1598

to go (etc.) to rack (and ruin)1599

shipwreck1607

suffera1616

unravel1643

to fall off1684

tip (over) the perch1699

to do away with1769

to go to the dickens1833

collapse1838

to come (also go) a mucker1851

mucker1862

to go up1864

to go to squash1889

to go (to) stramash1910

to go for a burton1941

to meet one's Makera1978

the mind > goodness and badness > badness or evil > worse > [verb (intransitive)] > go to ruin

brethec1275

to go to the dickens1833

the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going away > causing to go away > command to go away [verb (intransitive)]

scud1602

go scrape!1611

to push off (also along)1740

to go it1797

to walk one's chalks1835

morris1838

scat1838

go 'long1859

to take a walk1881

shoot1897

skidoo1905

to beat it1906

to go to the dickens1910

to jump (or go (and) jump) in the lake1912

scram1928

to piss offa1935

to bugger off1937

to fuck off1940

go and have a roll1941

eff1945

to feck off?1945

to get lost1947

to sod off1950

bug1956

to hit, split or take the breeze1959

naff1959

frig1965

muck1974

to rack off1975

1833 Georgia Tel. (Macon) 3 Oct. They know that if they tell the truth they will all go to the dickings.

1877 W. Black Green Pastures & Piccadilly III. vii. 105 The man's life was ruined—yes, sir..business went to the dickens.

1910 San Antonio (Texas) Light & Gaz. 13 Feb. 14/1 Just tell the sheriff and all his bunch to go to the dickens.

1966 Sewanee Rev. 74 640 He can die and go to the dickens right there in Macon for all I care.

2015 Washington Post (Nexis) 18 Oct. (Met. 2 ed.) (Sports section) d5 Peyton Manning's career sure went to the dickens after Spurrier needled him, didn't it?

8. to —— the dickens out of (a person or thing): to —— (a person or thing) to an excessive, violent, or unpleasant degree.Cf. to —— (the) hell out of at hell n. and int. Phrases 5e.

ΚΠ

1876 Colorado Chieftain (Pueblo, Colorado) 12 Jan. A large rocky cauldron of water came in view...Such jumping and flopping would beat the dickens out of all the tea kettles.

1911 Sat. Evening Post 23 Dec. 17/2 Take it easy an' keep quiet, for if you say two words I'll wallop the dickens out of you!

1975 Hillsboro (Ohio) Press Gaz. 16 May 4/3 He worked an inning and frightened the dickens out of the Washington batters he faced.

2009 Daily News (N.Y.) (Nexis) 21 Nov. (Sports Final ed.) (Sports section) 50 They beat the dickens out of us...It's been a long time since someone beat our team that badly.

†II. Used more generally.

9. With the. The devil. Obsolete.

ΚΠ

1830 Lady's Mag. Oct. 231/1 May the Dickons himself be at the trouble of fetching me, Aby Conway, if I say a word more about it to-night.

1840 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Nov. 696/1 ‘See how them Thurles girls dances’—(the domestics went on)—‘well, the dickens wouldn't tire them; I give it up to them.’

1874 J. P. Smith Ten Old Maids xviii. 182 He'll fire off a lot of questions at a man, that the dickens couldn't answer, in words as long as my arm.

1909 N.Y. Times 29 Oct. 1/7 If the Dickens himself had nominated me it would have been nothing to me so long as I was nominated.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2019; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

单词	dickens
释义	dickensn. Brit. /ˈdɪkɪnz/, U.S. /ˈdɪkənz/ Forms: 1500s–1800s dickens, 1600s–1700s dickins, 1700s–1800s dickons, 1800s dickings, 1800s dickonce. Origin: From a proper name. Etymon: Dickens. Etymology: < the surname Dickens (also Dickons , Dickins ; 1377 as Dicones ), as a substitution for devil n., as having the same initial sound (compare similar use of deuce n.²). Perhaps compare also -kins suffix.The surname is in origin a variant of Dicken (compare -s suffix¹), which itself arose from the forename Dicun , a pet form of Dick (see dick n.¹). colloquial. Now often used in a consciously archaic way. I. In oaths, asseverations, and phrases, originally as a euphemistic substitute for devil. 1. Intensifying an interrogative word or phrase, as what (also where, how, etc.) the dickens; formerly also †what (also where, how, etc.) a dickens: used to express incredulity, annoyance, etc.Cf. devil n. Phrases 1d(a), what the deuce? at deuce n.² b. ΘΚΠ the mind > language > malediction > oaths > [interjection] > euphemisms for stronger oaths > for the devil dickens1599 dash1883 1599 T. Heywood 1st Pt. King Edward IV sig. E3 What the dickens is it loue that makes ye prate to me so fondly. 1671 J. Caryll Sir Salomon iii. 45 What a dickens is come to our Master? 1677 T. D'Urfey Madam Fickle ii. 14 Oh have I found you at last? I wonder where the Dickins you ramble! 1794 J. Wolcot Rowland for Oliver in Wks. II. 308 Then what a dickens can I do or say? 1872 J. W. De Forest Kate Beaumont xv. 62 Who the dickens told you that nonsense? 1882 Cent. Mag. Feb. 491/1 I wonder how the dickens I got my Nightshirt all over tar like that. 1922 ‘R. Crompton’ Just—William i. 26 Why the dickens is the young idiot coming at this time of day? 2004 N.Y. Times 19 Dec. (Week in Review section)11/3 Who the dickens are you? 2. (the) dickens take you (also him, her, it, etc.): used to express dismissal, contempt, impatience, etc. Now rare.Cf. the devil take you at devil n. Phrases 1b(a), the deuce take it! at deuce n.² b. ΚΠ 1653 T. Urquhart tr. F. Rabelais 1st Bk. Wks. Prol. 7 Hearken joltheads..or dickens take ye. 1693 T. D'Urfey Richmond Heiress iv. i. 33 Ah dickins take it, it won't do now, yet I could have Sung my Sol, Fa, when I was a Batchelour. 1770 I. Bickerstaff 'Tis Well it's no Worse v. i. 87 The dickens take him, he has put me in such a tremble, as I have not been in this twelve-month. 1841 Chambers's London Jrnl. 21 Aug. 91/1 ‘Why, then, the dickens take you, Sporteen,’ said she.., ‘what do you mane by stickin' your devil of a needle into me?’ 1884 Northern Echo 11 Mar. 4/2 A faction was a number of men allied together for the furtherance of some interest, and—well, the dickens take the principle. 1936 Referee (Sydney) 23 July 1/2 Before Mr. Broughton's time, the bruisers of England were content to exchange blow for blow, and the dickens take the breakages of nose, rib, and jaw. 3. a. (oh) the dickens!: used as an interjection expressing surprise, irritation, exasperation, etc. Now archaic and rare.Cf. devil n. Phrases 1d(b).In quot. 1697 as one of a number of interjections made by a character in response to a letter he is reading aloud. ΘΚΠ the mind > mental capacity > expectation > surprise, unexpectedness > exclamation of surprise [interjection] whatOE well, wellOE avoyc1300 ouc1300 ay1340 lorda1393 ahaa1400 hillaa1400 whannowc1450 wow1513 why?1520 heydaya1529 ah1538 ah me!a1547 fore me!a1547 o me!a1547 what the (also a) goodyear1570 precious coals1576 Lord have mercy (on us)1581 good heavens1588 whau1589 coads1590 ay me!1591 my stars!a1593 Gods me1595 law1598 Godso1600 to go out1600 coads-nigs1608 for mercy!a1616 good stars!1615 mercy on us (also me, etc.)!a1616 gramercy1617 goodness1623 what next?1662 mon Dieu1665 heugh1668 criminy1681 Lawd1696 the dickens1697 (God, etc.) bless my heart1704 alackaday1705 (for) mercy's sake!1707 my1707 deuce1710 gracious1712 goodly and gracious1713 my word1722 my stars and garters!1758 lawka1774 losha1779 Lord bless me (also you, us, etc.)1784 great guns!1795 mein Gott1795 Dear me!1805 fancy1813 well, I'm sure!1815 massy1817 Dear, dear!1818 to get off1818 laws1824 Mamma mia1824 by crikey1826 wisha1826 alleleu1829 crackey1830 Madonna mia1830 indeed1834 to go on1835 snakes1839 Jerusalem1840 sapristi1840 oh my days1841 tear and ages1841 what (why, etc.) in time?1844 sakes alive!1846 gee willikers1847 to get away1847 well, to be sure!1847 gee1851 Great Scott1852 holy mackerel!1855 doggone1857 lawsy1868 my wig(s)!1871 gee whiz1872 crimes1874 yoicks1881 Christmas1882 hully gee1895 'ullo1895 my hat!1899 good (also great) grief!1900 strike me pink!1902 oo-er1909 what do you know?1909 cripes1910 coo1911 zowiec1913 can you tie that?1918 hot diggety1924 yeow1924 ziggety1924 stone (or stiffen) the crows1930 hullo1931 tiens1932 whammo1932 po po po1936 how about that?1939 hallo1942 brother1945 tie that!1948 surprise1953 wowee1963 yikes1971 never1974 to sod off1976 whee1978 mercy1986 yipes1989 1697 J. Vanbrugh Æsop iii. 33 Æs. Reads... I therefore hope this from your Justice, that what you have done three times your self, you'll pardon once in your Daughter. The Dickins. 1728 C. Cibber Vanbrugh's Provok'd Husband iv. i. 56 The dickens! has this Rogue of a Count play'd us another Trick then? 1877 Frank Leslie's Pop. Monthly Aug. 239/1 ‘The dickens!’ said Mr. Gallup—(he might have used a more profane expression on a week-day)—‘The dickens! What's he about?’ 1900 E. S. Worthington Gentle Art Cooking Wives iii. 47 ‘And then..he bent and kissed me.’ ‘The dickens!’ cried Randolph. 1947 News-Palladium (Benton Harbor, Mich.) 30 Jan. 4/6 Oh the dickens, Miss Fletcher, you know what I mean! 2010 @tiranshuman 14 Sept. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) Oh the dickens my stomach bubbling like it has Alka Seltzer and Gingerale inside it. b. With the. In emphatic expressions of negation, esp. in responses expressing contradiction, disbelief, denial, etc., as the dickens he is (also has, etc.). Now rare.Cf. devil n. Phrases 1e(a). ΚΠ 1762 ‘T. Bobbin’ Toy-shop Open'd 47 That's eawer yung Cowt ot lies reawt sed Yed. The Dickons it is sed I! 1775 D. Garrick May-Day ii. 18 Gip. She is in this parish, and not above twenty yards from the maypole. Clod. The dickens she is! who? who is it? 1842 S. Lover Handy Andy xxiii. 201 The dickins a mind he minded the market. 1884 Illustr. London News Christmas No. 19/3 ‘The dickens you are’, thought Fred. 1914 Corona (Calif.) Daily Independent 17 June ‘Why not sit down and let me take a look at that tooth.’ ‘Tooth the dickens!’ cried the man. 1943 Methodist (Sydney) 27 Mar. 11/2 ‘I've been thinking about it for a long time.’ ‘The dickens you have!’ 4. to play the (very) dickens (with): to cause mischief (for); to wreak havoc (on).Cf. to play the devil with at devil n. Phrases 4a, to play the deuce with at deuce n.² b, to play hell with at hell n. and int. Phrases 5a(a). ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > order > disorder > become disordered [verb (intransitive)] > cause disorder to make havoc1480 to play the devil (also the very devil, the devil and all)1542 to play the dickens1771 to work havoca1774 to play smash1841 to play havoc1910 1771 T. Smollett Humphry Clinker I. 229 He [sc. the lion] would roar, and tear, and play the dickens. 1831 T. Moore Summer Fête 822 Like those Goths who played the dickens With Rome and all her sacred chickens. 1861 G. A. Sala Dutch Pict. xiii. 199 They [sc. the children] played the very dickens with Doctor Pantologos. 1938 Winnipeg Evening Tribune 25 Feb. 13/1 According to the laundry industry of New York state, the old Monday habit plays the very dickens with the laundries. 1993 Atlanta Jrnl. & Constit. (Nexis) 15 May e1 A new pest has made it all the way past New Orleans: a freshwater mollusk that plays the dickens with drinking water systems. 5. In similes. a. (as) —— as the dickens: —— to a great degree; extremely or excessively ——.Cf. (as) —— as the devil at devil n. Phrases 2b. ΚΠ 1822 Weekly Visitor & Ladies' Museum 21 Dec. 118/2 Away Jake and I went down the Bowery like old Nick; cold as the dickens; had no great coat, had left it in the country. 1955 Time 31 Oct. 84 Whenever you have 2,000 workers, you always have misunderstandings—most of them as petty as the dickens. 1977 Newsday 19 Mar. 40/2 ‘It must have been 110 degrees in that ring,’ Gil Clancy said. ‘Hot as the dickens,’ Foreman said. 2014 @erin_lindsay92 22 Apr. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) I am obsessed with Prince George. That baby is as cute as the dickens. b. like the dickens: (used adverbially as an intensifier) with great speed, energy, violence, etc. ΚΠ 1823 Weekly Visitor & Ladies' Museum 1 Mar. 279/2 We..got Uncle Long to get his horse and sleigh ready; bid the girls good-night, and started off like the dickens. 1892 Ballou's Monthly Mag. Mar. 241/2 My jacket caught in a branch and tore like the dickens. 1921 P. G. Wodehouse Let. 23 Mar. in Yours, Plum (1990) i. 19 I worked like the dickens..and wrote twelve thousand words of the Sally novel. 1971 Ada (Okla.) Weekly News 12 Aug. 4/1 If there was ever a vegetable villain it is the turnip...It smells like the dickens while cooking. 2000 Newsweek (U.S. ed.) (Nexis) 8 May (Periscope section) 8 Black flies..get in under clothes, bite often and hurt like the dickens. 6. a (also the, one) dickens of a —— and variants: (used as an intensifier, emphasizing size or degree) a considerable or remarkable ——.Cf. a devil of a —— at devil n. Phrases 1g, a hell of a —— at hell n. and int. Phrases 4a. ΚΠ 1829 T. C. Croker Legends Lakes I. 53 See how the white water comes biling..over the big black rocks... And then it makes such a dickins of a nise as it pounces into that black pool at the bottom. 1845 W. Carleton Parra Sastha v. 133 You're the dickens of a funny crathur, Nancy, so you are. 1871 Judy 1 Nov. 12/2 Tell you what, my dear boy, the Government is in the very dickens of a stew. 1912 H. Collingwood Adventures Dick Maitland xii. 189 No wonder that he was in such a dickens of a bad temper! 1995 B. Bryson Notes from Small Island (1996) vii. 106 Whoever was the person behind Stonehenge was one dickens of a motivator, I'll tell you that. 7. to go to the dickens: to go to ruin; to fail or be ruined completely. Also in constructions with imperative force expressing contemptuous dismissal or rejection, such as you (he, she, etc.) can go to the dickens.Cf. to go to the devil at devil n. Phrases 1b(b), to go to hell at hell n. and int. Phrases 3b. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > failure or lack of success > fail or be unsuccessful [verb (intransitive)] withsitc1330 fail1340 defaulta1382 errc1430 to fall (also go) by the wayside1526 misthrive1567 miss1599 to come bad, or no, speedc1600 shrink1608 abortivea1670 maroon1717 to flash in the pan1792 skunk1831 to go to the dickens1833 to miss fire1838 to fall flat1841 fizzle1847 to lose out1858 to fall down1873 to crap out1891 flivver1912 flop1919 skid1920 to lay an egg1929 to blow out1939 to strike out1946 bomb1963 to come (also have) a buster1968 the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > destroy [verb (intransitive)] > be destroyed, ruined, or come to an end losec888 fallOE forlesea1225 perishc1275 spilla1300 to go to wreche13.. to go to the gatec1330 to go to lostc1374 miscarryc1387 quenchc1390 to bring unto, to fall into, to go, put, or work to wrakea1400 mischieve?a1400 tinea1400 to go to the devilc1405 bursta1450 untwindc1460 to make shipwreck1526 to go to (the) pot1531 to go to wreck (and ruin)a1547 wrake1570 wracka1586 to hop (also tip, pitch over, drop off, etc.) the perch1587 to lie in the dusta1591 mischief1598 to go (etc.) to rack (and ruin)1599 shipwreck1607 suffera1616 unravel1643 to fall off1684 tip (over) the perch1699 to do away with1769 to go to the dickens1833 collapse1838 to come (also go) a mucker1851 mucker1862 to go up1864 to go to squash1889 to go (to) stramash1910 to go for a burton1941 to meet one's Makera1978 the mind > goodness and badness > badness or evil > worse > [verb (intransitive)] > go to ruin brethec1275 to go to the dickens1833 the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going away > causing to go away > command to go away [verb (intransitive)] scud1602 go scrape!1611 to push off (also along)1740 to go it1797 to walk one's chalks1835 morris1838 scat1838 go 'long1859 to take a walk1881 shoot1897 skidoo1905 to beat it1906 to go to the dickens1910 to jump (or go (and) jump) in the lake1912 scram1928 to piss offa1935 to bugger off1937 to fuck off1940 go and have a roll1941 eff1945 to feck off?1945 to get lost1947 to sod off1950 bug1956 to hit, split or take the breeze1959 naff1959 frig1965 muck1974 to rack off1975 1833 Georgia Tel. (Macon) 3 Oct. They know that if they tell the truth they will all go to the dickings. 1877 W. Black Green Pastures & Piccadilly III. vii. 105 The man's life was ruined—yes, sir..business went to the dickens. 1910 San Antonio (Texas) Light & Gaz. 13 Feb. 14/1 Just tell the sheriff and all his bunch to go to the dickens. 1966 Sewanee Rev. 74 640 He can die and go to the dickens right there in Macon for all I care. 2015 Washington Post (Nexis) 18 Oct. (Met. 2 ed.) (Sports section) d5 Peyton Manning's career sure went to the dickens after Spurrier needled him, didn't it? 8. to —— the dickens out of (a person or thing): to —— (a person or thing) to an excessive, violent, or unpleasant degree.Cf. to —— (the) hell out of at hell n. and int. Phrases 5e. ΚΠ 1876 Colorado Chieftain (Pueblo, Colorado) 12 Jan. A large rocky cauldron of water came in view...Such jumping and flopping would beat the dickens out of all the tea kettles. 1911 Sat. Evening Post 23 Dec. 17/2 Take it easy an' keep quiet, for if you say two words I'll wallop the dickens out of you! 1975 Hillsboro (Ohio) Press Gaz. 16 May 4/3 He worked an inning and frightened the dickens out of the Washington batters he faced. 2009 Daily News (N.Y.) (Nexis) 21 Nov. (Sports Final ed.) (Sports section) 50 They beat the dickens out of us...It's been a long time since someone beat our team that badly. †II. Used more generally. 9. With the. The devil. Obsolete. ΚΠ 1830 Lady's Mag. Oct. 231/1 May the Dickons himself be at the trouble of fetching me, Aby Conway, if I say a word more about it to-night. 1840 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Nov. 696/1 ‘See how them Thurles girls dances’—(the domestics went on)—‘well, the dickens wouldn't tire them; I give it up to them.’ 1874 J. P. Smith Ten Old Maids xviii. 182 He'll fire off a lot of questions at a man, that the dickens couldn't answer, in words as long as my arm. 1909 N.Y. Times 29 Oct. 1/7 If the Dickens himself had nominated me it would have been nothing to me so long as I was nominated. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2019; most recently modified version published online March 2022). < n.1599
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