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The Devil’s Dictionary · Chapters

Chapters explained

Chapter companions for The Devil’s Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce.

  1. Chapter 1

    Author's Preface

    The author explains the origin and publication history of The Devil's Dictionary, noting its serialization starting in 1881, the forced title change to The Cynic's Word Book due to religious scruples, the subsequent flood of imitator 'cynic' books, and the unauthorized appropriation of its content by humorists. He defends against potential plagiarism charges and acknowledges the contributions of Father Gassalasca Jape, whose quotations enrich the work.

  2. Chapter 2

    The Devil's Dictionary

    This chapter presents a collection of satirical definitions that critique human folly, hypocrisy, and the misuse of language, often with a cynical and humorous tone.

  3. Chapter 3

    A

    This chapter presents a series of satirical definitions for words beginning with the letter 'A', offering cynical and humorous commentary on human nature, society, politics, religion, and language.

  4. Chapter 4

    B

    This chapter presents a series of satirical definitions for words beginning with the letter B, including 'Beggars', 'Behavior', 'Belladonna', 'Benedictines', 'Benefactor', 'Berenice's Hair', 'Bigamy', 'Bigot', 'Billingsgate', 'Birth', 'Blackguard', 'Blank-Verse', 'Body-Snatcher', 'Bondsman', 'Bore', 'Botany', 'Bottle-Nosed', 'Boundary', 'Bounty', 'Brahma', 'Brain', 'Brandy', 'Bride', 'Brute', 'Baal', 'Babe', 'Baby', 'Bacchus', 'Back', 'Backbite', 'Bait', 'Baptism', 'Barometer', 'Barrack', 'Basilisk', 'Bastinado', 'Bath', 'Battle', 'Beard', 'Beauty', 'Befriend', and 'Beg'. Each definition employs irony, cynicism, and dark humor to critique human nature, society, religion, and politics.

  5. Chapter 5

    C

    This chapter presents a series of satirical definitions for words beginning with the letter C, including Caaba, Cabbage, Calamity, Callous, Calumnus, Camel, Cannibal, Cannon, Canonicals, Capital, Capital Punishment, Carmelite, Carnivorous, Cartesian, Cat, Caviler, Cemetery, Cenobite, Centaur, Cerberus, Childhood, Christian, Circus, Clairvoyant, Clarinet, Clergyman, Clio, Clock, Convent, Conversation, Coronation, Corporal, Corporation, Corsair, Court Fool, Coward, Craft, Crayfish, Creditor, Cremona, Critic, Cross, Cui Bono?, Cunning, Cupid, Curiosity, and Curse. The definitions are laced with irony and social commentary, often targeting religion, politics, human folly, and societal institutions.

  6. Chapter 6

    D

    This chapter presents a series of satirical definitions for words beginning with the letter D, including 'Dictator,' 'Dictionary,' 'Die,' 'Digestion,' 'Diplomacy,' 'Disabuse,' 'Discriminate,' 'Discussion,' 'Disobedience,' 'Dissemble,' 'Distance,' 'Distress,' 'Divination,' 'Dog,' 'Dragoon,' 'Dramatist,' 'Druids,' 'Duckbill,' 'Duel,' 'Damn,' 'Dance,' 'Danger,' 'Daring,' 'Datary,' 'Dawn,' 'Day,' 'Dead,' 'Debauchee,' 'Debt,' 'Decalogue,' 'Decide,' 'Defame,' 'Defenceless,' 'Degenerate,' 'Dullard,' and 'Duty.' The entries are laced with irony, cynicism, and wit, often targeting politics, religion, social conventions, and human folly.

  7. Chapter 7

    E

    This chapter presents a series of satirical definitions for words beginning with the letter 'E', including 'Eat', 'Eavesdrop', 'Economy', 'Edible', 'Editor', 'Education', 'Effect', 'Egotist', 'Ejection', 'Elector', 'Electricity', 'Elegy', 'Eloquence', 'Elysium', 'Emancipation', 'Embalm', 'Emotion', 'Encomiast', 'End', 'Enough', 'Entertainment', 'Enthusiasm', 'Envelope', 'Envy', 'Epaulet', 'Epicure', 'Epigram', 'Epitaph', 'Erudition', 'Esoteric', 'Ethnology', 'Eucharist', 'Eulogy', 'Evangelist', 'Everlasting', 'Exception', 'Excess', 'Excommunication', 'Executive', and others. The definitions are laced with irony, cynicism, and social commentary, often targeting human folly, religion, politics, and language.

  8. Chapter 8

    F

    This chapter presents definitions and verses for words beginning with the letter F, including Folly, Fool, Force, Foreordination, Fork, Forma Pauperis, Frankalmoigne, Freebooter, Freedom, Freemasons, Friendless, Friendship, Frog, Frying-Pan, Funeral, and Future. The entries are characterized by satirical wit, cynicism, and social commentary, often targeting religion, politics, human folly, and the absurdities of language and institutions.

  9. Chapter 9

    G

    This chapter presents a series of cynical definitions for words beginning with the letter G, including Gallows, Gargoyle, Garter, Genealogy, Generous, Genteel, Geographer, Geology, Ghost, Ghoul, Grapeshot, Grave, Gravitation, Great, Guillotine, and Gunpowder. The definitions are laced with satire, dark humor, and social commentary, often targeting religion, politics, human folly, and the absurdities of language and science.

  10. Chapter 10

    H

    This chapter presents a series of cynical definitions for words beginning with 'H', including 'Harangue', 'Harbor', 'Harmonists', 'Hatred', 'Head-Money', 'Heart', 'Heat', 'Heathen', 'Heaven', 'Hebrew', 'Helpmate', 'Hemp', 'Hermit', 'Hibernate', 'Hippogriff', 'Historian', 'History', 'Hog', 'Homeopathist', 'Homeopathy', 'Homicide', 'Homiletics', 'Honor', 'Hybrid', 'Hydra', 'Hyena', 'Hypochondriasis', and 'Hypocrite'. The entries are laced with satirical verses and dark humor, targeting religion, politics, social conventions, and human folly.

  11. Chapter 11

    I

    This chapter presents a series of satirical definitions and verses that critique religion, hypocrisy, human folly, and social conventions, including entries on 'Giaour,' 'Infidel,' 'Infralapsarian,' 'Ingrate,' 'Injury,' 'Injustice,' 'Ink,' 'Innards,' 'Innate,' 'Incubus,' 'Incumbent,' 'Indecision,' 'Indifferent,' 'Indigestion,' 'Indiscretion,' 'Inexpedient,' 'Infancy,' 'Inferiae,' 'I,' 'Ichor,' 'Iconoclast,' 'Idiot,' 'Idleness,' 'Ignoramus,' 'Illuminati,' 'Illustrious,' 'Imagination,' 'Imbecility,' 'Immigrant,' 'Immodest,' 'Immoral,' and 'Immortality.'

  12. Chapter 12

    J

    This chapter presents definitions for words beginning with the letter J, including humorous and satirical entries on the letter J itself, jealousy, jesters, Jews-harps, joss-sticks, and justice, often critiquing human folly, religion, and social institutions.

  13. Chapter 13

    K

    This chapter presents definitions for words beginning with the letter K, including 'Kiss', 'Kleptomaniac', 'Knight', 'Koran', and the letter itself. It also includes a lengthy entry on 'King's Evil' that traces the history of royal touch as a cure for scrofula and satirizes modern handshaking rituals.

  14. Chapter 14

    L

    This chapter presents a series of satirical definitions for words beginning with 'L', including 'Liar', 'Liberty', 'Life', 'Lighthouse', 'Limb', 'Litigant', 'Litigation', 'Liver', 'LL.D.', 'Learning', 'Lecturer', 'Legacy', 'Leonine', 'Lettuce', 'Leviathan', 'Lexicographer', 'Lock-And-Key', 'Lodger', 'Logic', 'Logomachy', 'Longanimity', 'Longevity', 'Looking-Glass', 'Loquacity', and 'Lord'. The definitions are laced with irony, cynicism, and social commentary, often targeting human folly, religion, politics, and language.

  15. Chapter 15

    M

    This chapter presents a series of satirical definitions for words beginning with the letter M, including 'Mace,' 'Mad,' 'Magdalene,' 'Magic,' 'Magnet,' 'Magnetism,' 'Mine,' 'Minister,' 'Minor,' 'Minstrel,' 'Miracle,' 'Miscreant,' 'Misdemeanor,' 'Misericorde,' 'Misfortune,' 'Miss,' 'Molecule,' 'Monad,' 'Monarch,' 'Monarchical Government,' 'Monday,' 'Money,' 'Monkey,' 'Monosyllabic,' 'Monsignor,' 'Monument,' 'Moral,' 'More,' 'Mouse,' 'Mousquetaire,' 'Mouth,' 'Mugwump,' 'Mulatto,' 'Multitude,' 'Mummy,' 'Mustang,' and 'Myrmidon.' The definitions are laced with irony and social commentary, targeting religion, politics, language, and human folly.

  16. Chapter 16

    N

    This chapter presents a series of satirical definitions for words beginning with the letter N, including 'Nectar,' 'Negro,' 'Neighbor,' 'Nepotism,' 'Newtonian,' 'Nihilist,' 'Nirvana,' 'Nobleman,' 'Noise,' 'Nominate,' 'Nominee,' 'Noncombatant,' 'Nonsense,' 'Nose,' 'Notoriety,' 'Noumenon,' 'Novel,' and 'November.' The entries critique politics, religion, society, and literary conventions with Bierce's characteristic cynicism and wit.

  17. Chapter 17

    O

    The chapter presents cynical definitions for words beginning with 'O', including Oath, Oblivion, Observatory, Obsessed, Obsolete, Obstinate, Occasional, Occident, Ocean, Offensive, Old, Oleaginous, Olympian, Omen, Once, Opera, Ostrich, Otherwise, Outcome, Outdo, Out-Of-Doors, Ovation, Overeat, Overwork, Owe, Oyster, Opiate, Opportunity, Oppose, Opposition, Optimism, Optimist, Oratory, Orphan, Orthodox, and Orthography. The definitions satirize human folly, religion, politics, and social conventions.

  18. Chapter 18

    P

    This chapter presents a series of cynical definitions for words beginning with the letter P, including 'Pig,' 'Pilgrim,' 'Piracy,' 'Pity,' 'Plagiarism,' 'Politician,' 'Politics,' 'Poverty,' 'Prayer,' 'Prejudice,' 'Presidency,' 'Press,' 'Prevaricator,' 'Prude,' 'Publish,' and 'Pygmy,' among others. The definitions satirize human nature, religion, politics, and social conventions.

  19. Chapter 19

    Q

    This chapter presents cynical definitions for words beginning with Q, including Queen, Quill, Quiver, Quixotic, Quorum, Quotation, and Quotient, each satirizing politics, language, human folly, and social conventions.

  20. Chapter 20

    R

    This chapter presents a series of cynical definitions for words beginning with the letter R, including 'Reverence,' 'Revolution,' 'Riches,' 'Righteousness,' 'Romance,' and 'Rubbish,' among others. The entries satirize politics, religion, social class, and human folly, often through ironic contrasts and mock-scholarly asides.

  21. Chapter 21

    S

    This chapter of 'The Devil's Dictionary' presents satirical definitions for words beginning with 'S', including Sabbath, Sacerdotalist, Sacrament, Sacred, Safety-Clutch, Saint, Salacity, Salamander, Serial, Severalty, Sheriff, Siren, Slang, Smithareen, Sophistry, Sorcery, Soul, Spooker, and Story. Through humor and irony, Bierce critiques religion, politics, social conventions, and human folly, often using verse and fictional quotations to underscore his points.

  22. Chapter 22

    T

    This chapter presents cynical definitions for words beginning with 'T', including 'Tights', 'Tomb', 'Tope', 'Tortoise', 'Tree', 'Trial', 'Table d'Hôte', 'Tail', 'Take', 'Talk', 'Tariff', 'Technicality', 'Tedium', 'Teetotaler', 'Telephone', 'Telescope', and 'Tenacity'. The entries satirize human behavior, religion, politics, and social norms, often with dark humor and moral critique.

  23. Chapter 23

    U

    This chapter presents a series of satirical definitions for words beginning with the letter U, including 'Ubiquity,' 'Ugliness,' 'Ultimatum,' 'Un-American,' 'Unction,' 'Understanding,' 'Unitarian,' 'Universalist,' 'Urbanity,' 'Usage,' and 'Uxoriousness.' Through these entries, the author skewers religious doctrine, diplomatic hypocrisy, national prejudice, and social conventions, often using absurd anecdotes and verse to underscore his critiques.

  24. Chapter 24

    V

    This chapter presents cynical definitions of Valor, Vanity, Virtues, Vituperation, and Vote, each satirizing human folly, self-deception, and the absurdities of war, politics, and social pretension.

  25. Chapter 25

    W

    This chapter presents definitions for words beginning with W, including satirical takes on Wall Street, war, weather, weddings, werewolves, widows, wine, wit, witches, women, and worms'-meat. Bierce's characteristic cynicism targets political figures, social conventions, and human folly.

  26. Chapter 26

    Chapter X

    This chapter discusses the letter X, its resistance to spelling reform, its symbolic uses for ten dollars and as an abbreviation for Christ, and its representation of woman's mind in psychological algebra. It notes that words beginning with X are Grecian and will not be defined in this dictionary.

  27. Chapter 27

    Y

    This chapter defines words beginning with Y, including 'Yankee,' 'Year,' 'Yesterday,' 'Yoke,' and 'Youth,' each with satirical or poetic commentary on American identity, time, marriage, and the idealized past.

  28. Chapter 28

    Z

    The chapter presents definitions for words beginning with Z, including Zany, Zanzibari, Zeal, Zenith, Zeus, Zigzag, and Zoology, each offering satirical commentary on human behavior, religion, politics, and science.