a devil of a job
A difficult or frustrating time; much difficulty. I'm having a devil of a job getting this window open—I think it has been painted shut. We had a devil of a job convincing Grandpa to go to the doctor for that bad cough. I thought that assignment was easy, so I'm surprised to hear you guys had a devil of a job with it.
a/the devil of a (something)
Used as an intensifier to indicate an extreme degree of something, especially that which is difficult, frustrating, or vexing. I'm having the devil of a time getting this computer to work. Something must be wrong with it. We knew it would be a devil of a job overhauling the entire network, but it was unavoidable. These weeds can become a devil of a nuisance if you let them grow for too long.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
devil of a job
and devil's own jobthe most difficult task. We had a devil of a job fixing the car. It was the devil's own job finding a hotel with vacancies.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
devil of a
Also,
one devil or the devil of a ;
hell of a. Infernally annoying or difficult, as in
This is a devil of an assembly job, or
She had one devil of a time getting through the traffic, or
I had a hell of a morning sitting in that doctor's office. The first expression dates from the mid-1700s. The variant is a couple of decades newer and its precise meaning depends on the context. For example,
We had a hell of a time getting here invariably means we had a very difficult or annoying time, but
He is one hell of a driver could mean that he is either very good or very bad (see
hell of a, def. 2).
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
a devil of a job
or the devil's own job
If you have a devil of a job or the devil's own job to do something, it is very difficult to do. We had a devil of a job finding you in that place. Michael was having the devil's own job to make himself heard next to the roadworks.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012
a/the ˈdevil of a job, nuisance, fellow, etc.
(old-fashioned) a difficult or an unpleasant example of something: We’re going to have a devil of a job getting the roots of that tree out of the ground.Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017