bedevil
To harass or cause trouble for; to plague.
Verb
- To harass or cause trouble for; to plague.
- Guerrilla attacks continued to bedevil the larger army's supply routes.
- Mr. Levi may have been bedeviled by buried conflicts unrelated to Auschwitz. - 1988 December 19, William Styron, “Why Primo Levi Need Not Have Died”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 29 Aug...
- Such amity is no small thing. The narrowing world of Yiddish theater has been bedeviled with one “broyges — a cherished term for a falling out — after another - 2010 March 19, Joseph Berger, “How to Say Theater in...
Synonyms: disturb molest pester aggravate annoy nettle rankle ruffle sting antagonize bother disgruntle botherate bug get grate burn up bedevil cheese off devil exasperate frustrate get up grotch
- To perplex or bewilder.
Synonyms: befuddle bemuse addle baffle vex lose embroil stick stump baffound bamboozle bedevil throw bemud bewilder bumfuzzle complicate confound confuddle confuse confuzzle dazzle discombobulate disconcert
- To possess (someone's mind).
Synonyms: bodyjack
Origin
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁ep-der. Proto-Indo-European *h₁épsder. Proto-Indo-European *h₁epider. Proto-Indo-European *h₁pi Proto-Germanic *bider. Proto-Germanic *bi- Proto-West Germanic *bi- Old English be- Middle English bi- English be- Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *dwísder. Ancient Greek διά (diá) Ancient Greek δια- (dia-) Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH-der. Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō Ancient Greek βάλλω (bállō) Ancient Greek διαβάλλω (diabállō) Ancient Greek διάβολος (diábolos)bor. Latin diabolusbor. Proto-West Germanic *diubul Old English dēofol Middle English devel English devil English bedevil From be- + devil.