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Speak of the devil refers to a dated religious belief that if the Devil is mentioned by name, he will appear. This is why it is often used when someone coincidentally shows up, just as he or she is being talked about. Now, the belief is considered superstitious.
Wiki User
β 15y ago
Wiki User
β 9y agoIt's a shortening of another phrase 'Speak of the devil, and the devil shall come". It's an old superstition that says that talking about devils and demons, is an invitation for bad things to happen.
In the shorter sense, it means that whatever you were talking about, just happened. So say you were talking about someone, and that someone suddenly shows up, that's a case when you could say "Speak of the devil."
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This means that when you speak his name "the devil" or satan.. you are inviting evil or demonic spirits. Satan loves to hear his name. When we speak his name we glorify him and give him more power in our lives. He wants to be involved in everything, so don't speak about him.
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What is the origin of speak of the devil?
Speak of the Devil and He doth appear.....It is used when an object of discussion suddenly appears. Used in the Middle Ages as a superstitious prohibition against speaking of the Devil or any evil in general as the Devil might well appear
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