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It's the season of Halloween, so this column is going straight to the "devil."

Even though "devil" seems to contain the word "evil," the two words are unrelated. "Evil" descends from the Old English "yfel." By contrast, "devil," which first appeared in English during the 1100s, is derived from the Greek "diabolos" (slanderer, accuser).

When "devil" arrived in English, it soon expanded in meaning to denote something even more sinister than a slanderer: "a false god or heathen god."

Let's examine the origins of some other devilish phrases:

-- deviled eggs: When explorers returned to Europe with the red pods of a shrub discovered in South America, chefs ground these pods into a pepper and sprinkled it on a variety of dishes.

"Zowie, that's hot!" exclaimed the first tasters, and soon this fiery red pepper was being compared to hell and the devil. So, any food sprinkled with a hot spice -- from lamb to fish to eggs -- was said to be "deviled."

-- devil's food cake: The true origin of this term for a rich, dark cake has proven devilishly elusive. Some say it was concocted to contrast with the spongey, airy texture of "angel food" cake, others that its reddish tint reminded people of the devil and still others that its richness made eating it sinful.

Which one is true? Only the devil knows.

-- devil to pay: The most likely explanation of this phrase meaning "the negative consequences of an action" is that it refers to having to pay the devil back after making a Faustian bargain, as in the phrase, "The devil will get his due."

But some linguists suggest that its origins are more nautical than naughty. "Devil" was a sailors' term for a seam on a ship's hull that was especially large or difficult to reach, thus making it hard to "pay." (One meaning of the verb "pay" is "to coat with a waterproof substance," such as tar or caulk.)

Thus, "paying the devil" -- spreading tar on a troublesome seam to keep it watertight -- was a torturous process.

It's a hull of a theory, but it's almost certainly wrong. The first recorded use of "devil" to mean the seam on a hull didn't appear in print until 1828. Yet the expression "the devil to pay" was first recorded during the 1500s.

It's possible, of course, that sailors used "devil" to mean a troublesome seam for several decades before this term was written down. But a gap of three centuries between oral use and written use is hard to explain.

When researching word origins, the devil is in the details.

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Rob Kyff, a teacher and writer in West Hartford, Connecticut, invites your language sightings. His book, "Mark My Words," is available for $9.99 on Amazon.com. Send your reports of misuse and abuse, as well as examples of good writing, via email to WordGuy@aol.com or by regular mail to Rob Kyff, Creators Syndicate, 737 3rd Street, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254.

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