fiend
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In short
A fiend is an evil spirit or a very cruel person. In informal use, it can also mean someone intensely enthusiastic about something, as in a coffee fiend.
What does fiend mean?
Is fiend always an insult?
No. A fiend in a frightening story may be a demon, and calling a cruel person a fiend is strongly negative. In a phrase such as a chocolate fiend, the word can be a playful exaggeration of enthusiasm.
The surrounding words matter. The enthusiast sense does not make every use of fiend complimentary.
A fiend for something vs. a fiend at something
A fiend for something likes it intensely. A fiend at something is exceptionally skilled at it. Someone might be a fiend for puzzles without being a fiend at solving them.
A noun can also come before fiend: a coffee fiend is someone especially keen on coffee.
Fiend and hound
Both words can describe an enthusiast. Hound often emphasizes avidly seeking or collecting something; fiend emphasizes an intense appetite or enthusiasm. Their other meanings differ, so they are not interchangeable in every sentence. See hound for its dog and verb senses.
Where does it come from?
Fiend goes back to an Old English word for an enemy or adversary. Etymonline connects that word with a verb meaning to hate; its history later includes the Devil and a cruel person. The enthusiast meaning is a later development.
How to use it in a sentence
“The story's fiend guarded a bridge beneath the mountain.”
“My brother is a coffee fiend who plans trips around small roasteries.”
“I am a fiend for crossword books.”
“She is a fiend at finding mistakes in spreadsheets.”
Sources and updates
- fiend, Cambridge Dictionary. Checked November 1, 2026.
- fiend for something, Cambridge Dictionary. Checked November 1, 2026.
- Fiend Definition & Meaning, Merriam-Webster. Checked November 1, 2026.
- Fiend - Etymology, Origin & Meaning, Online Etymology Dictionary. Checked November 1, 2026.
Definitions and examples are written in our own words from the sources above. Published .