bə̇, bē+ transitive verb
( bedeviled or bedevilled ; bedeviled or bedevilled ; bedeviling or bedevilling ; bedevils )
Etymology: be- + devil
1. : to possess with or as if with a devil : bewitch
2. : to change for the worse
a room bedeviled by a poor decorator
: spoil , corrupt
3.
a. : to treat diabolically : torment and abuse or maltreat
b. : to drive frantic with or as if with care and worry
c. : harass , vex , annoy , pester
bedeviling city officials in little matters — Green Peyton
hard to hold the horses on a straight course with the insects bedeviling them — H.L.Davis
d. : to make worse often by obscuring or muddling : confuse and aggravate
racial tensions that bedevil politics — Times Literary Supplement
how tendentious maps can bedevil an international problem — G.R.Crone