demoniacal
English
editAlternative forms
editEtymology
editFrom Latin daemoniacus + -al.[1]
Pronunciation
edit- IPA(key): /ˌdiːməˈnaɪəkəl/
Audio (Southern England): (file)
Adjective
editdemoniacal (comparative more demoniacal, superlative most demoniacal)
- Pertaining to, characteristic of, or produced by a demon or evil spirit; devilish, demonic, fiendish.
- sarcastic, demoniacal laughter
- 1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, “In which Miss Sharp and Miss Sedley Prepare to Open the Campaign”, in Vanity Fair […], London: Bradbury and Evans […], published 1848, →OCLC, page 13:
- Rebecca laughed in her face, with a horrid sarcastic demoniacal laughter, that almost sent the schoolmistress into fits.
- 1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, “The Head of the Ethiopian”, in She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC, page 59:
- 'What do you think of that, Job?' I asked of our retainer, who was sitting on the edge of the boat, trying to get as much sunshine as possible, and generally looking uncommonly wretched, and I pointed to the fiery and demoniacal head.
- 1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 72:
- The spectator feels almost persuaded that he is witnessing some unearthly demoniacal orgie.
Derived terms
editTranslations
editReferences
edit- ^ “demoniacal, adj. & n.”, in OED Online [1], Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000, archived from the original on 2023-10-09.