the devil makes work for idle hands

proverb

Synonym of idle hands are the devil's workshop.

Similar
idle hands are the devil's workshop
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Meanings

the devil makes work for idle hands1

proverb
  1. Synonym of idle hands are the devil's workshop.

    Synonyms: idle hands are the devil's workshop

the Devil makes work for idle hands2

proverb
  1. Synonym of idle hands are the devil's workshop.

    “You’ve been busy since we were at school together.” / “Well you know what they say: the Devil makes work for idle hands.[…]”

    2017, Jonathan Green, “Worthless Remains”, in Matthew Bright, editor, Clockwork Cairo: Steampunk Tales of Egypt, Twopenny Books, →ISBN, page 67
    2 more examples

    ‘[…] We’re self-sufficient in food now too: sheep and cattle graze on the island, and we grow our own vegetables and corn at the agricultural station at Longridge, about a mile inland from here.’ / ‘And the convicts do all this?’ asked Fallon. / Price nodded. ‘It keeps them out of trouble. You know what they say: the Devil makes work for idle hands![…]’

    2002, Jonathan Lunn, “The Isle of Mis’ry”, in Killigrew and the Incorrigibles, London: Headline, →ISBN, pages 87–88

    “My brother, a mobster?” / “That’s right. Mike, we were wasting our time with that piece meal—one job every six months—line. You know what they say ‘the Devil makes work for idle hands.’[…]”

    2015, J.L. Vaughan, chapter 23, in No Good Son, Flybarrier Press, →ISBN, page 128

    Synonyms: idle hands are the devil's workshop

Synonyms & antonyms

proverbSynonym of idle hands are the devil's workshop.

Similar
idle hands are the devil's workshop

proverbSynonym of idle hands are the devil's workshop.

Similar
idle hands are the devil's workshop
Also see
idle hands are the devil's workshop
Cite this entry
APA

the devil makes work for idle hands. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20devil%20makes%20work%20for%20idle%20hands

MLA

“the devil makes work for idle hands.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20devil%20makes%20work%20for%20idle%20hands. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “the devil makes work for idle hands,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20devil%20makes%20work%20for%20idle%20hands.

Source: the devil makes work for idle hands on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.