demon

C1 Topic:General Vocabulary

US /ˈdiː.mən/ See IPA manual

Homophones

daemon /ˈdiːmən/

Freq #2710

Meanings

1

noun
An evil supernatural being or spirit.

The film is about demons trying to take over the world.
2

noun
A cruel or wicked person.

How could you hurt that puppy? You're a demon!
3

noun
Someone with great skill, energy, or passion for an activity.

He's a demon at the card table.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · an evil supernatural being... devil

2 noun · a cruel or wicked person. monster

More barghest bogeymanboggardbogie bogle cacodemondaevafiendflibbertigibbetgenius ghoul

Word family

Forms demons

Derived forms bedemondedemonizationdemon-hunterdemonagoguedemoncratdemonessdemonettedemonic demonicaldemonifydemonisationdemonise

Related forms agathodemonantidemonicarchdemoncacodemoncounterdemonicdemonagoguedemonessdemonettedemonhooddemoniac demoniacal demoniacally

Simplified etymology

Demon comes from Greek daimōn, originally a divine or supernatural being between gods and humans, or an attendant or inspiring spirit. The beings were not inherently evil in ancient Greek thought; that association appeared in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible made in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC.

Etymology

From Middle English demon, a borrowing from Medieval Latin dēmōn, daemōn (“lar, familiar spirit, guardian spirit”), from Ancient Greek δαίμων (daímōn, “dispenser, god, protective spirit”). Displaced native Old English sċucca and Old English þyrs. Doublet of daimon.

demon Middle English dēmōn la-med δαίμων Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# demon

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈdiː.mən/
**Frequency rank:** 2710

## Meanings
1. An evil supernatural being or spirit.
2. A cruel or wicked person.
3. Someone with great skill, energy, or passion for an activity.

## Examples
- The film is about demons trying to take over the world.
- How could you hurt that puppy? You're a demon!
- He's a demon at the card table.

## Synonyms
- barghest
- bogeyman
- boggard
- bogie
- bogle
- cacodemon
- daeva
- devil
- fiend
- flibbertigibbet
- genius
- ghoul

## Derived Forms
- bedemon
- dedemonization
- demon-hunter
- demonagogue
- demoncrat
- demoness
- demonette
- demonic
- demonical
- demonify
- demonisation
- demonise

## Related Forms
- agathodemon
- antidemonic
- archdemon
- cacodemon
- counterdemonic
- demonagogue
- demoness
- demonette
- demonhood
- demoniac
- demoniacal
- demoniacally

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: demon
- Root: dēmōn
- Root: δαίμων

## Etymology
From Middle English demon, a borrowing from Medieval Latin dēmōn, daemōn (“lar, familiar spirit, guardian spirit”), from Ancient Greek δαίμων (daímōn, “dispenser, god, protective spirit”). Displaced native Old English sċucca and Old English þyrs. Doublet of daimon.

## AI Etymology
Demon comes from Middle English demon, a borrowing from Medieval Latin dēmōn, daemōn (“lar, familiar spirit, guardian spirit”), from Ancient Greek δαίμων (daímōn, “dispenser, god, protective spirit”). Displaced native Old English sċucca and Old English þyrs. Doublet of daimon. The historical chain includes demon (Middle English), dēmōn (Medieval Latin), and δαίμων (Ancient Greek). The surrounding word family includes derived forms such as bedemon, dedemonization, demon-hunter, and demonagogue and related forms such as agathodemon, antidemonic, and archdemon. In present use it covers an evil supernatural being or spirit, a cruel or wicked person, and someone with great skill, energy, or passion for an activity.

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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