devil of a time

a devil of a time

A difficult or frustrating time; much difficulty. I'm having a devil of a time getting this window open—I think it has been painted shut. We had a devil of a time 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 time with it.

See also: devil, of, time

the devil of a time

A great deal of difficulty or frustration. I'm having the devil of a time getting this window open—I think it has been painted shut. It was the devil of a time convincing Grandpa to go to the doctor for that bad cough.

See also: devil, of, time

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2022 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

devil of a time

 and the devil's own time

a very difficult time. I had a devil of a time with my taxes. This cold has been giving me a devil of a time. Fixing the car seemed easy, but I had the devil's own time doing it.

See also: devil, of, time

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.