devil dog

noun

"devil-dog" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“devil dog” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A US marine.

Key facts for devil dog
PropertyValue
Headworddevil dog
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “devil dog” sits in English frequency

devil dog falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for devil dog is 9 letters long, classified as a noun. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "A US marine.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for devil dog, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Calque of German Teufelshund (“hound of Hell”, literally “Devil's hound”). The correct English form is devil dog, spelled D-E-V-I-L- -D-O-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    A US marine.

Etymology

Calque of German Teufelshund (“hound of Hell”, literally “Devil's hound”).

Synonyms

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "devil dog"?
"devil dog" is spelled D-E-V-I-L- -D-O-G.
What does "devil dog" mean?
As a noun, "devil dog" means: A US marine.
What is the origin of the word "devil dog"?
Calque of German Teufelshund (“hound of Hell”, literally “Devil's hound”). See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “devil dog”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is D-E-V-I-L- -D-O-G - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list