Timeline for Meaning of "The devil with you"
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
9 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 18, 2022 at 0:12 | comment | added | Robbie Goodwin | Oh, come on! "To the devil with you" means "Go to the devil." The words "with you" were needed to lend sense to that different form of expression. "Go to the devil with you" is at best clumsy enough to spoil its value. | |
| Feb 16, 2022 at 21:21 | comment | added | jsw29 | @EricBrown-Cal, the comments posted under a particular answer are always presumed to be about that answer. | |
| Feb 16, 2022 at 19:04 | comment | added | Justin | Well, the OP was only concerned with the meaning of the phrase and you've covered that (with a supporting example). If the OP needs further information/explanation, it would ideally be done in the comment section. +1 | |
| Feb 16, 2022 at 17:51 | comment | added | MarcInManhattan | @jsw29 It's true that I didn't analyze the syntax of that phrase, but I did give its idiomatic meaning (the definition quoted in parentheses). And it's not really "well explained in Justin's answer"; he doesn't give any explanation of the "with you" part, for example. I'd be happy to vote for an answer that provides a better explanation than mine does. | |
| Feb 16, 2022 at 17:01 | comment | added | Eric Brown - Cal | Maybe your comment should have made it clear you wanted the above answer elucidated, as opposed to one that could be confused for a genuine confusion?? | |
| Feb 16, 2022 at 16:25 | comment | added | jsw29 | @EricBrown-Cal, yes, and all this has already been well explained in Justin's answer. It is, however, not something that can be discerned from this answer. | |
| Feb 16, 2022 at 16:04 | comment | added | Eric Brown - Cal | You are being told to goto the devil. equivalent to being told to goto hell. The devil with you = to the devil with you = you goto the devil = you goto hell. The "with you" construction is similar to "what will we do with you" Nobody else is being referenced, despite the use of "with" | |
| Feb 16, 2022 at 15:55 | comment | added | jsw29 | This doesn't make the expression any clearer than the original. Who is supposed to 'go to the devil with you'? The addressee ('you')? If so, what does it mean to go anywhere with oneself? | |
| Feb 16, 2022 at 6:03 | history | answered | MarcInManhattan | CC BY-SA 4.0 |