foul thiefn.
/ˌfaʊl ˈθiːf/, /ˈfaʊl θiːf/, U.S. /ˌfaʊl ˈθif/, /ˈfaʊl ˌθif/, Scottish English /ˌfʌʊl ˈθif/, /ˈfʌʊl θif/ Chiefly Scottish. Now rare.
With the. A nickname for: the Devil. Cf. old (auld), ill thief at thief n. 2b. Sc. National Dict. (at Foul) records this compound as still in use in Shetland in 1953.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > deity > a devil > the Devil or Satan > [noun]
devileOE
Beelzebubc950
the foul ghosteOE
SatanOE
warlockOE
SatanasOE
worsea1200
unwinea1225
wondc1250
quedea1275
pucka1300
serpenta1300
dragon1340
shrew1362
Apollyon1382
the god of this worldc1384
Mahoundc1400
leviathan1412
worsta1425
old enemyc1449
Ruffin1567
dismal1570
Plotcocka1578
the Wicked One1582
goodman1603
Mahu1603
foul thief1609
somebody1609
legiona1616
Lord of Flies1622
walliman1629
shaitan1638
Old Nicka1643
Nick1647
unsel?1675
old gentleman1681
old boy1692
the gentleman in black1693
deuce1694
Black Spy1699
the vicious one1713
worricow1719
Old Roger1725
Lord of the Flies1727
Simmie1728
Old Scratch1734
Old Harry1777
Old Poker1784
Auld Hornie1786
old (auld), ill thief1789
old one1790
little-good1821
Tom Walker1833
bogy1840
diabolarch1845
Old Ned1859
iniquity1899
1609 J. Wybarne New Age Old Names xxiii. §1 121 That was wont to spit at the name of an Archbishop, as people were wont to doe when they named the foule thiefe.
1685 G. Sinclair Satan's Invisible World xi. 79 They came that length in familiar discourse, with the Foul-Thief, that they were no more afrayed to keep up the Clash with him, than to speak to one another.
1786 R. Burns Halloween xiv, in Poems 109 I daur you try sic sportin, As seek the foul Thief onie place, For him to spae your fortune.
1894 S. R. Crockett Raiders (1896) xviii. 137 Did ye think the bit stot was the Foul Thief himsel' that ye gied that skelloch!
1927 J. Buchan Witch Wood x. 176 ‘Saw ye the Foul Thief?’ asked the awed Prentice.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2021; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1609