the dickens

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Boras and Belly became Boris and Natasha, a joke that hurt the Boys In Blue like the dickens.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 2, 2023

He knows that “An Inconvenient Truth” scared the dickens out of some people.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 4, 2017

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Farmer and former Nebraska senator Norm Wallman: ‘Anything to get the ball rolling . You can plant it early in the spring, and it’s tough as the dickens.’

From The Guardian • Jun. 12, 2016

So why the dickens would he say incorrectly that Nevada’s voters are 80 percent white in a state that’s sparsely polled but when it is polled shows her well into the clear?

From Slate • Feb. 12, 2016

So I went to Suffolk looking for Frances and her mother who could cook like the dickens.

From "The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother" by James McBride