give the devil his due

give the devil his due
Also in the phrase to give the Devil his due.

1589 LYLY Pap with Hatchet III. 407 Giue them their due though they were diuels..and excuse them for taking anie money at interest.

1596 NASHE Saffron Walden III. 36 Giue the diuell his due.

1642 Prince Rupert’s Declaration 2 The Cavaliers (to give the Divell his due) fought very valiantly.

1751 SMOLLETT Peregrine Pickle I. xvii. You always used me in an officer-like manner, that I must own, to give the devil his due.

1936 H. AUSTIN Murder of Matriarch xxiii. To give the devil his due..I don’t think that Irvin planned to incriminate anyone else.

1978 R. L. HILL Evil that Men Do vi. Giving the devil his due will always jostle the angels.


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  • give the devil his due — {v. phr.} To be fair, even to someone who is bad; tell the truth about a person even though you don t like him, * /I don t like Mr. Jones, but to give the devil his due, I must admit that he is a good teacher./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • give the devil his due — {v. phr.} To be fair, even to someone who is bad; tell the truth about a person even though you don t like him, * /I don t like Mr. Jones, but to give the devil his due, I must admit that he is a good teacher./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • give the devil his due — To acknowledge some commendable quality, etc in someone otherwise disapproved of • • • Main Entry: ↑due * * * proverb acknowledge the good qualities of even a bad or undeserving person …   Useful english dictionary

  • give the devil his due — ► give the devil his due proverb if someone or something bad has any redeeming features these should be acknowledged. Main Entry: ↑devil …   English terms dictionary

  • give\ the\ devil\ his\ due — v. phr. To be fair, even to someone who is bad; tell the truth about a person even though you don t like him, I don t like Mr. Jones, but to give the devil his due, I must admit that he is a good teacher …   Словарь американских идиом

  • give the devil his due — be fair (even to someone who is bad and who you dislike) I don t like to work with him at all as I think he is lazy. Still you have to give the devil his due because he always gets the job done …   Idioms and examples

  • give the devil his due — verb To acknowledge the positive qualities of a person who is unpleasant or disliked. . . . for he was never yet a breaker of …   Wiktionary

  • give the devil his due — idi to acknowledge the accomplishments of someone otherwise considered unworthy …   From formal English to slang

  • give the devil his due — acknowledge something good in a person regardless of their character …   English contemporary dictionary

  • give the devil his due —  Be just, even to an opponent or enemy …   A concise dictionary of English slang

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